


Emblem

by anAnonWrites



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: (Most of these are chapter specific, (as opposed to magick), (but not for long), (no sexual reference intended or implied), (to the point of collapsing), (will add more tags upon request), Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Arguing, Arson, Blaming Character for Something They Didn't Do, Capslock, Character Gets Ignored on Purpose, Claustrophobia, Crowds/Large Places, Crying, Exhaustion, Fantasy Violence, Fire, Friends Arguing, High Fantasy, Hurting People Unintentionally, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Magic, Memory Loss (Mention), Mentions of Potentially Eldritch Beings/Monsters, Mild Language, Morality | Patton Sanders Angst, Multi, Orphans, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Panic Attack, Parent Death, Scopophobia, Screaming mention, Self-Hatred, Stripping Mention, Swearing, Swords, TS Storytime 2020 Submission, Thomas Sanders Storytime Big Bang Challenge, Threats of Violence, Thunder and Lightning, Thunderstorms, Transphobia, War Discussions/Mentions, Yelling, astrology mention, blood mention, calling someone crazy, illness mentions, knife, mild violence, sibling fighting, thorns/brambles, unaccepting family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:14:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 44,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25537879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anAnonWrites/pseuds/anAnonWrites
Summary: In the world of Falea, a person’s Emblem appears on their non-dominant forearm on their twelfth birthday. No two Emblems are the same, just as no two people or set of powers are the same. One may draw upon the powers from their Emblem to use their unique skills, though not all are gifted with may truly be considered magic.It has been 2 years since the Calling of Prince (and soon to be king) Remus Knight to The Snake, a person no one has ever seen except by those they Call forth. Since then, his twin brother, Roman, has been training under his tutor and best friend Logan Magiste. Now, in only fourteen moons, Roman will become King of Magnus. But more and more people have been Called to The Snake, and when Patton Hartt, a beloved baker and Roman’s lover, is Called for reasons unknown, Roman and Logan venture off and begin their journey to save Patton.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Dr. Emile Picani/Sleep | Remy Sanders
Comments: 12
Kudos: 22
Collections: Storytime! 2020





	1. The Beautiful Day

**Author's Note:**

> Total Word Count: 44760
> 
> Before you delve into this fic, I would like to make a disclaimer that in this fic, the magic and witches described are based on fictional magic often seen in media. I do not want anyone to hop into this fic expecting one thing and getting another. I understand the difference between magick and magic, and I mean no harm to the witch community.
> 
> If you didn't know, this is a submission for the TS Big Bang Challenge 2020! I highly suggest you check it out @ts-storytime on Tumblr! @prox-xima also did some lovely art, which I will link in the comments once it is posted!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2705  
> TW: Brief swearing, crowded places, implied death, war mentions, burning/fire (a past event referred to), crying

_ In the world of Falea, a person’s Emblem appears on their non-dominant forearm on their twelfth birthday. No two Emblems are the same, just as no two people or set of powers are the same. One may draw upon the powers from their Emblem to use their unique skills, though not all are gifted with may truly be considered magic. _

_ It is a common occurrence for one to misinterpret the meaning of their Emblem. A person with a book for an Emblem, for example, may expect themselves to have the power to read a lightning speed when they have the ability to memorize any detail they see with- _

“Are you even listening?” The teacher marched over to the prince’s desk and suddenly snapped the heavy book, the loud echo in the cavernous hall waking him from his daydreams as he jolted awake.

“I’m paying attention!”

“Now then. Read pages 204 to 350 for your studies on the Hecati War. I will assess how much you’ve learned next week. I’d also like two scrolls by the end of  _ this _ week detailing how Sir Squiggles the Brave’s interpretation of his Emblem led to his eventual downfall.”

“This many pages?” Roman Knight asked, the section of the book he was to read in his hand. “Logan, do I  _ have _ to? And two scrolls? You just had me write two essays last week! And why is the knight named Squiggles? Did someone name him after their pet hamster?”

Logan Magiste rolled up the sleeves of his robes, and he frowned at the young prince in front of him. “One query at a time. First of all, yes, you do have to read those pages- all _ one hundred and forty-six of them. _ Secondly, I will be expecting two scrolls. That’s nothing for your writing speed. You simply have to apply yourself to the task. Thirdly, Sir Squiggles was indeed named after his father’s noble steed, who led him to victory in the  _ Emblem _ War in 876.”

“Still don’t understand why one would name their horse Squiggles, Sir Knows-a-Lot.”

“Prince Roman, I am no knight; I am merely your tutor. There is no need for such formalities.”

“Too literal.” Roman sighed and gazed out the stained glass window. It was a beautiful day outside. Birds were singing. Flowers were blooming. On days like these, princes like himself ought to have been on horseback, riding through the woods. Or perhaps, in the town, eating freshly baked bread by the fountain. Even having tea with the annoying ladies of the court appealed to Roman more than history lessons with Logan. These days were rare, given the sudden wave of storms washing into the area, which were rather unnatural for this time of year.

“So, Logan-”

“Please refer to me as Professor Magiste when we are in the middle of a class. Such informalities may be used outside of the classroom.”

“So, Logan,” The prince continued, smirking as his friend’s mouth quirked up into a brief smile, “Do you want to go riding with me later today? We can go to the town and se-”

“No. You know that you can’t go out, Ro-Your Highness. Not unless you are on official business.”

“Remus and I would go out all the time.”

“But he’s gone now because of the last time you two went out.”

“That was years ago!”

“It has only been one year, eleven months, three weeks, and two days. Since then, we’ve had to cram everything in for you to become king as soon as possible. You don’t want to leave Magnus without a king, do you?”

Before Roman could reply, a distant clocktower rang the hour. The prince leapt out of his seat, scrambling to the door. “Have a good day, Logan!”

“You left your books!”

“See you tomorrow!” The young prince dashed through the hallways, sprinting past servants and guards. _ Left, right, right, left, center. _ “Hey Joan!” he called out to a painting in the gallery. The castle was built like a maze centuries ago by the celebrated Royal Alosan, in order for all of those inside the castle to hide from invaders easily. And now, it just gave Prince Roman a headache.

Was this the art gallery? No, it was the kitchen.

Was this the 2nd floor West Wing guest quarters? Not even close! It was the library!

Wait. How in the star's name did Roman end up in the Great Hall and not the Grand Ballroom!? (“There’s a difference, Roman, a difference!” cried the Logan in his mind.)

The game went on and on until he managed to stumble outside into the fresh air. He crossed the courtyard, as discreetly as possible, which was rather difficult for a man of his height and stature. Roman earned himself some stares and whispers, leaping out at his boots, trying to latch on to any part of him, and he couldn’t help but listen to some of the words whispered.

“Where is he going?”

“He isn’t supposed to leave the castle, is he?”

“Probably going out to see another show, that lazy bastard.”

“Slacking off from his duties, eh?”

“The coronation is only in a few days!”

“What a selfish man!”

The drawbridge was currently lowered, as servants rushed quickly through to make deliveries and run errands. Two guards stood by, talking and laughing loudly with the passersby. As Roman approached, they stiffened, immediately hurrying back to their posts at either side of the drawbridge, and the flow of the people stopped, staring as the prince approached them.

“Eyyy, Crim, Zeph! How are you two doing?”

“...”

“That’s splendid to hear, but listen, I’ve got to run to the village and grab some stuff. You know, the usual prince-y type of deal. Cloaks and shields.” Roman flashed a wide grin, trying desperately to hold the one-sided conversation. “Can you believe that Logan’s trying to get me to write two scrolls about the Hecati War? I mean, come on, give me a break! The coronation is in, like, two-ish weeks! Amiright?”

“...”

“Alright then! It was wonderful to talk to you two! Love your work! Keep it up! Keeping the castle safe and all, haha…” His voice faltered as he began to walk past the two when Crim spoke.

“Your Highness,” he said tonelessly, “You must be escorted out.”

“The Snake has called forth yet another citizen, and Magnus would be lost without you,” finished Zephyr.

“Your brother was called by the Snake because he left the borders of the Grand Mage’s protection charm. We do not wish the same fate upon you. One of us will accompany you.”

With a sigh, Roman vaguely traced the Emblem on his forearm and drew forth a large red shield. The guards took a step back, uneasy. The shield shimmered with magic, real and solid, but also magic and non-existent. Roman’s voice was cool, taking on an almost icy tone like that of his tutor’s. “If you two have forgotten, my Emblem gives me to raise this shield; a symbol of light, hope, power, and glory; at a moment’s notice. It is laced with the strongest protection charms that have been proven to protect me and everyone behind it, from the Snake’s call. I went out that day  _ with _ Remus. He was not alone. ”

The two guards eyed each other, daring each other to say what they both had in mind. But someone else beat them to it.

“And yet you couldn’t protect him.”

Roman turned, and there he was, not a white hair out of place, nor a speck of mud on his boots, despite the unnatural rainstorms as of late, Logan. Roman glowered, and he stepped forward, waving his arms dramatically and very close to prodding Logan with the edge of his shield. “You know full well that Remus jumped at the chance to hear the Snake’s Call. He always talked about fighting them and punching the Snake in their face for taking so many people. It wasn’t my fault!”

“I know that. I never intended to imply that it was your fault. You couldn’t have prevented what happened. It was Remus’ choice to go, and now,” Logan sighed, staring off into nowhere, “We must pay the price.”

The tutor turned to the two guards, who were still tense and anxiously awaiting orders. “I will walk the prince out of the castle.” They bowed and returned to their posts, confident that the keen mind of Logan Magiste could prevent the prince from doing anything rash. The prince traced the Emblem on his left wrist again, his shield dematerialized, and they walked out of the outer courtyard, into the village.

In crowded areas, it is most appropriate to have private conversations. Such places are typically very loud, which may be uncomfortable for some, but for others, discussions can be held without being heard by the entire town. Snippets may be caught on the ears of a careful listener, but for the most part, your conversation would be private. That is if the speakers could hear each other over the din.

Watching the eyes from those around them, Logan sighed and took off his black cloak. He handed it to the prince, muttering something Roman couldn’t quite catch: “Foolish...Working hours...Clothing…” The prince, however, did understand that he needed to be discreet. Drawing the cloak tightly around him, he did his best with a free hand to ruffle up his black curls and tried to look as inconspicuous as possible, which he failed to do.

Everyone in the town knew who Roman and Logan were.

For the past month, Roman’s face was plastered everywhere, informing everyone that he would be crowned on this year’s summer solstice (also his birthday), which was now only a fortnight away. And of course, no one could forget the fateful day, when Roman and his brother Remus had ventured out into the town, and Remus was summoned by the Snake, never to be seen again.

Logan, on the other hand, was not famous for being royalty, but for having once been the royal physician and a young genius. His studies aided the growth of education in Magnus, and he  _ was _ well respected among the entirety of Magnus. Those days were behind him, as of several years ago, and Logan was now merely the tutor to the prince. Once Roman was crowned, he would become the royal advisor.

That being said, the glances they earned were expected, but both were slightly uncomfortable. Normally, Roman would revel in being the center of attention, but as of late, the coronation and the strange storms had plagued him with anxiety. Logan, too, would revel in at least holding someone’s attention, but with the glares he had received all too often over the past few years, he refused any chance of speaking publicly.

The silence between them lengthened, their feet walking them to who knows where as they half-heartedly listened to the general calls of the village. The streets were lit by what could’ve only been magic, as the buildings overlapped the narrow streets, blocking the sun. The walls of buildings glowed faintly, and in their close quarters lit up the streets. Carts were wheeled through, making it difficult to walk comfortably. The people called out, and the city called back to them. After some time, Logan spoke, “I can’t believe you’ve been sneaking out.”

“Why can’t I?” the prince retorted. “I’m perfectly capable.”

“You may  _ think _ so, but it is unprofessional, and your time would be better spent working. The end of the week is reserved for your leisure hours, Roman.”

“Eyy, first name basis now, huh?”

“It is my duty to take care of you. I care a lot about you, Roman,” Logan said softly, barely loud enough for the prince to hear. He remained silent as they continued to wander the busy streets with no particular destination in mind.

Passing a flyer advertising Roman’s coronation, Roman spoke, “Were you implying that I won’t be a good king back there?” Logan peered over, an eyebrow raised. “You said, ‘We must pay the price.’ Do you think that Remus would’ve been better?”

“Certainly not.” They had arrived at the circular center of the village. A fountain depicting the first Royal Alosan bubbled brightly as children ran around and played. Clothes were being washed, goods were being baked, and weapons were being forged in the shops lining the circle. The pair sat down at the edge of the pool, Roman’s fingers skimming the top of the water as Logan gazed around the center.

“Remus’ methods of trying to defend Magnus were...unusual. They certainly would have accomplished  _ something _ . However, they would have been inadequate in the long term.” Roman continued to look skeptical, and Logan sighed. “What I meant to say back there was that it might have been better if you two could have ruled together. You two balance each other out, and before the loss of Creon, the castle was filled with… something.”

“‘Something?’”

“Something. An intangible thing, I just can’t seem to describe. I’m always at a loss for words when I think about it. There was so much more color and light with you around, and Remus was a counter. Life isn’t always as you painted it, and he brought those other aspects of it forward.”

Roman leaned towards the other, raising his eyebrows suggestively. “Did you ever like him?”

Logan bristled. “He was an interesting person to have around. I thought of him as nothing more than the young man I was training to be king. You on the other hand-”

“Wait, you want to go out with me?”

Laughter bubbled out of Logan’s mouth as he threw his head back and clapped his hand on Roman’s back. He looked into the prince’s eyes and, with grace and firmness, said, “No. I do not, my friend.”

“Good, good just checking…”

Seeing the discomfort in Roman’s eyes, Logan quickly added, “To this day, I’ve seen you as my friend. We may not always get along, but,” he held Roman’s hands in his, “You’re one of the few people with whom I can have an easy conversation. It’s not quite often that princes are fond of reading for entertainment. Most do it just to tell everyone they can do so.”

They smiled, dissolving most, if not all, of the tension in the air. “Would you like to go to the Sweets’ Dream Bakery, Your Highness? Perhaps it will get your mind off of the upcoming coronation.”

“Of course, Professor Magiste.”

They got up and walked together, laughing and chatting. The pair’s easy chatter made the two seem less like a future advisor to a future king, and more like a friend to friend. It was only when they smelled smoke that they stopped.

The Sweets’ Dream Bakery was burnt to the ground. The smell of burnt wood had yet to dissipate, suggesting whatever had occurred not too long ago. A few stones and bricks were blackened, in heaps on the ground. Only a few beams were left standing, though the surrounding buildings did not appear to be harmed. The flow of people avoided the area, their eyes darting towards the demolished building and back forward again. 

Outside the ruins sat a man cradling a pair of darkened spectacles, numb to the world around him. His short copper-ish hair fell into his face, and his rectangular spectacles slid down his nose. The pale outline of two pink hearts connected was revealed as the sleeves of his simple beige work-shirt were rolled up. His shoes were covered in ashes and soot, and he wrung his hands slowly.

The pair looked at each other for a beat; then Roman marched over, pulling Logan in tow. “Emile? What happened here?”

The man looked up at the prince and the teacher, tears in his eyes and smiling sadly. “Oh, my friends. I’m sorry. It looks like we don’t have anything for sale today. We probably won’t have anything to sell for a long time…”

Logan adjusted his shirt, unsure of how  _ not _ to speak too bluntly. “There was a fire.”

“Yes, Logan.” Emile sniffed and wiped his nose on his sleeve. “Remy was Called, and now he’s gone.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out @prox-xima's incredible artwork for this story! (May contain mild spoilers!)


	2. The Baker’s Hearth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 3108
> 
> TW: Crying, Fire/Burning, Screaming Mention, Crowded Places, Orphans (who get taken in), Friends Arguing, food

The voices of Roman and Logan were trapped in their throats as Emile continued to sob, finally allowing himself to cry in the presence of two close friends. Roman was the first to act, sitting down next to Emile and trying his hand at whispering soothing words in the man’s ear while shooting daggers at those who looked on from the crowd. Logan chose to walk through the remains of the fire, examining the wreckage.

“Do you want to tell me what happened?” Roman asked softly, rubbing the other’s back gently.

Emile sniffed, swallowing hard. “Last night, I went to bed. Remy said that he wouldn’t be up for a while, but that was to be expected. You know him, working all night and crashing in bed to open the shop midday.

“So I went to bed and fell asleep peacefully. It was most likely a few hours before dawn when I smelled the burning. I didn’t remember Remy going to bed; he would have woken me up when he turned in for the night. He never would have left something in the oven, but he did. He must have been Called in the middle of the baking and he left and something caught fire and then I woke up, but the bakery was ablaze and then I left and oh stars, Roman! Remy’s gone!” Emile buried his face into Roman’s arms and sobbed loudly, as the prince tried to calm him down again.

Meanwhile, Logan had completed his walk around the premises, examining the nearby buildings. He sat on the other side of Emile and tentatively gave him a handkerchief. “Thank you,” the man murmured, blowing his nose loudly. “I’m usually more put together than this. A lot happier too.”

“It’s alright, Emile,” Logan said quietly. “Your response is appropriate for such an event.” After some silence between the three, Logan asked tentatively, “Is there anyone in the vicinity of the bakery that has the power to manipulate fire? The surrounding buildings appear unharmed. Given the amount of destruction, the material of the homes, and the close quarters, I’m surprised none of the others caught fire as well.”

“There are a few fire benders around, but that’s not what stopped the fire. I was screaming for help. Everyone woke up and tried to help me put out the fire, but it was too late. We managed to save their houses though.”

They sat in silence again. The sky was still gloriously blue, as if mocking Emile of this dreadful event. Clouds drifted along, seemingly saying, ‘Boo-hoo. Sorry, but I’ve got other places to be.’ The villagers were of little help. Though most walked on without a single glance, some looked on sympathetically. None stopped, however, and left the three alone.

“I don’t even know where I can stay. All of my clothes and books...”

Roman eyed Logan, a silent debate ensuing between the two as Emile stared at the street.

_ He should stay in the castle. _

_ Are you mad? That’s a foolish idea! _

_ He’s our friend! _

_ There has to be another way. Think of your coronation! _

_ ‘Think about a vacation?’ _

Logan sighed for what must have been the hundredth time that day. He gazed out at the passing people, the gears turning in his mind. Suddenly, he had an idea. “Emile, have you ever heard of The Baker’s Hearth?”

“Maybe..ah, yes! That’s the bakery owned by the nice man from Illustris, isn’t it? He’s always happy and cheerful and such?”

“I’m sorry,” Roman interrupted, “But  _ who _ are we talking about? Where is this  _ Baker’s Hearth _ ?”

“I’m surprised you never heard of it, Roman,” Emile said, getting to his feet. “It’s rather popular. Remy and the owner have often been competing in friendly competitions, but usually, they end up in a tie! He’s so nice.”

“Come on, you two.” Logan offered a hand to Roman, smiling. “Let’s go to The Baker’s Hearth.”

-

The Baker’s Hearth was on the outskirts of town, but it was extremely popular among everyone within the city walls. The owner was warm and kind, and the food was freshly baked every morning. The shop consisted of the entire first floor of a two-floor building. It was always brimming with people, especially young children. The kindly baker did not have any children of his own, but he always cared for those he entered his doors and treated them as if they were family.

Logan, Emile, and Roman stood outside its doors as if expecting the baker to burst out and sing about cookies, or something along those lines. No baker burst out of the bakery, as this story does not include musical interludes. Logan looked to Emile and asked, “Are you ready?”, to which his reply was a small sniffle then a determined nod. The trio entered.

The bakery was a quiet and tranquil space. Tables and mismatched chairs lay scattered about, as a couple of shoppers wandered the store. Various loaves of bread lined the walls, and dried herbs, meats, and even flowers hung from the wooden beams above. Shelves housed minced meat pies and simple pastries. The working counter was buzzing with young workers rolling dough and chopping fruits and meats. An oven blazed in the corner merrily with a heat that would have certainly been pleasant to be near during the winter. It did not, however, feel as nice as it could’ve felt due to the close proximity of people within the store. The bakery was sweltering. Roman was tempted to remove his cloak throughout the visit; and continuously wiped his brow with his sleeve, earning scowls from Logan.

As the two held their scowling contest, Emile stood on his tiptoes, trying to spot the baker over the heads of the many people inside. “Oh! Sorry! Excuse me! Trying to find someone! Have you seen the owner? Ow! My foot! It’s okay! Oh! Patton!” Emile waved his arms aggressively, trying to keep a smile on his face while hopping on one foot. “Over here!”

Logan looked up just in time to see Roman trying to remove his hood, “Roman, you need to keep your hood on in here.”

“Logan, it’s ridiculously hot in here, and it’s not just me.” An eye roll for that one. “I’ll admit the food looks good here, but can’t we just leave Emile here? It sounds like he already found-”

“Hello there, Your Highness!”

Roman turned away from Logan and came face-to-face with a man, several inches shorter than him. The baker had warm brown eyes behind a pair of simple round glasses, smudged with flour. Red hair softly curled on his head, framing his round olive face. His Emblem was visible on his right wrist: a set of concentric pale blue hearts. The marking glowed a faint blue, indicating the baker’s powers were currently in use. Roman noticed the sweat on the baker’s face, which could have been caused by a vast number of things, such as the heat of the bakery, a man hard at work, or the excessive use of his Emblem (Roman privately bet on the latter). Adjusting his thin blue vest, the baker smiled brightly, then bowed deeply.

“It’s an honor to have you in The Baker’s Hearth. My name is Patton Hartt! I understand from Emile that Remy was Called, and The Sweets’ Dream Bakery had been burned down.”

The prince stammered in the presence of such a delightfully pleasant man. “Y-yes. That-that happened.”

Even though it seemed impossible, Patton’s smile somehow managed to brighten even more. Waves of peacefulness and calm washed over Roman, and he returned Patton’s smile, who continued. “I talked with Emile. I’ll let him room with me in the bakery. I don’t know if many know this, but we keep a few spare rooms upstairs for anyone who needs it.”

“That’s very generous of you, Patton,” Logan smiled.

Patton saw the teacher and suddenly began to excitedly flap his hands. His voice took a higher, energetic tone. “Logan! I haven’t seen you in forever! How are you? Would you like a jelly doughnut! I’ll make a fresh batch for you!” The baker squealed then threw his arms around Logan. Roman made a move to separate the two, knowing that Logan usually liked his personal space, but was surprised when Logan chuckled and melted into the hug.

“It’s been a while, Patton.” He pulled away and rested his hands on the baker’s shoulders as best as he could, considering that he was much shorter. “You know I’d love some doughnuts.”

“Great! I’ll take you two a room upstairs so you don’t have to be in so much heat! Emile is just getting settled in one right now!” Patton led the duo through the crowd, smiling merrily at everyone he passed. The stairs were behind the counter, exposed to the public eye. So the three earned many stares from customers distracted from their clamoring for goods.

“Is that the prince?”

“Look, it’s Prince Roman!”

“Why is he with the baker?”

“His name is Patton Hartt!”

“Oh, look! It's Logan Magiste, that bastard…”

_ “What are those three doing together?” _

They hurried up the stairs and onto the second floor. Patton led them to Emile, who was sitting on a bed reading a flour stained cookbook, no doubt one of Patton’s. “Emile! Glad to see you’re settled, al _ dough _ you’re in some pretty bad circumstances!”

Logan sighed while Roman and Emile both tried to stifle their laughter. “Thanks, Patton!” Emile smiled cheerfully, then frowned. “Are you feeling alright there, Patt? You seem like you’re overexerting yourself there. Has the shop been alright?”

Patton chuckled nervously, “Ah, no. I’ve been doing fine.” The air in the room tensed as if taking in Patton’s anxious energy. Roman glanced at the baker, who had by then realized his mistake and was trying to discreetly trace over his Emblem. It’s pale blue glow faded away and the nervous energy disappeared. “Business is slower than usual, but I’d put it down to the economy right now.”

“Wait, what’s wrong with the economy, Mr. Hartt?”

“It’s alright! You can call me Patton!” The baker grinned, and even though Roman knew Patton wasn’t using his Emblem, he felt warmth bloom in his chest. It stayed tight and close, as the heat rose in his cheeks. “It’s just all the crops, and the fields flooding, tensions with Archen, and whatnot! But without any rain, plants can’t grow, and the plants feed animals, and we eat animals  _ and _ plants, so this should be fine!” Roman’s jaw dropped at this, and Logan gave a slow and regretful shake of his head. Patton clapped his hands merrily and turned to Emile. “Alright, Emmy! We’ll give you some space, while I take Logan and His Highness on a little tour of the bakery!”

The three waved goodbye to Emile, who proceeded to continue reading his book. Patton, Roman, and Logan stood by the staircase, looking down at bakers and customers. Young children, from roughly ages six to twelve, ran throughout the shop. Patton explained that most were apprentices. “All of them have to have at  _ yeast _ a few years of experience in baking before trying to join the business. Apprentices usually stay with whoever they’re training under until they’re 16.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have the room to keep everyone for so long, as much as I’d love to.” Patton ruffled the hair of a blue-eyed boy carrying a sack of flour down to the counter downstairs. “But I usually end up taking in whoever needs it. With the Callings of the Snake, parents have gone missing and children have been left to run around the streets, stealing and begging. I can’t just let them lose their sense of morality because the Snake Called their parents.” The baker watched the children with a sad smile. “They’re all so young. I… I’ve been in a similar situation, and I don’t want what happened to me to happen to them.”

Before Roman could try to ask what happened, Logan cleared his throat. “How is the business faring, Patton? Is everything running smoothly?”

The baker sighed sadly but put another smile on his face. “Well, it’s been getting harder to get the grains we need from the mill, and while it’s great that people are ordering more baked goods, I don't think I have enough supplies to fill them all. Last week, two people were Called at once from one of our main suppliers. The children have been growing more and more anxious by the week. And with those horrible storms as of late,” Patton shuddered, “There are too many negative emotions in the air.”

“Perhaps I could help.” Logan and Patton turned to stare at Roman, who was avoiding eye contact, instead choosing to look at the flowers hung up on the beams. “I will be king soon, and I need to make the right choices for Magnus. I didn’t actually know there were this many problems before. I can’t imagine what it’s like for other businesses now; everyone looks so excited for the coronation.” He thought of Emile and the Calling of Remy to the Snake. The children ran throughout the shop, laughing and joking with each other as they worked. Roman turned to Patton, staring into his eyes and said, “I will bring those people back, for their families and lovers, and I will find out what’s causing these storms. That will be my first order of business. Then everything will be normal again.”

Patton gasped, “Really? You’d do that?”

“Of course!”

The two held eye contact as Logan stood awkwardly to the side. After staring lovingly at each other, Logan said, “You are doing good work here, Patton. I’m sure Roman will find a way to help you in your situation. However, we must make our way back. It’s getting late.”

“The bell tower hasn’t even rung again yet!” the young prince complained. The teacher glared, trying to signal now was not the time. Roman understood, then sighed. “Well Patton, it was a pleasure to meet you.” He took the baker’s hands and kissed them. “I hope I see you again soon.”

The baker flushed bright red, then quickly bowed. “It was an honor to have you here, Your Highness. Thank you for coming.” He smiled, his glasses were slightly askew from having bowed down so quickly. “Please come again soon!”

Patton walked Logan and Roman down the stairs and waved them goodbye. The glowing walls of the buildings cast a hazy light as the prince looked back to the baker, but he was already gone.

-

That night, Roman’s mind drifted away from his homework and the coronation, away from the expectations and stress, the Callings and everything else in Falea.

All he wanted to do was think about Patton.

He sat by the fire in his room, telling servants to not disturb him and putting in wood for the blaze himself. He conjured fantasies about whisking away the baker into the sunset, or of building a larger and grander bakery so Patton could care for as many children as he wanted to. Perhaps the latter didn’t even need to be a fantasy; Roman was to be king, and he could certainly have something built for Patton. Grains could be milled fresh inside; there would be plenty of bedrooms and a large hearth. Flowers hanging everywhere and a large plot of land to farm. The children could learn how to work, write, read, and enjoy themselves peacefully...

Roman worked hours into the night, drawing and writing down ideas as to how he would surprise Patton. Then his attention turned to poems and songs he could write describing his feelings, of which there were many. He wrote and paced and choreographed numbers to go with his writings and he was in love, ever so in love. His quill flew across pages and pages, a great creative rush flowing over him as never before. It was simply exhilarating.

Clouds rumbled discontentedly outside, having suddenly arrived in the middle of the prince’s work without his knowledge. The fire continued to crackle as the hours slipped away, and it was late at night when someone knocked on Roman’s door.

“Come in.”

Roman didn’t look up as Logan entered, whose eyes were hazy as if he too had not been sleeping. He looked silently at the prince and the papers strewn all over the floor. “Roman. These are very expensive papers and parchments you’re wasting right now.”

“It’s not a waste,” the prince grumbled. “It’s all for Patton.”

The tutor sighed and sat down, watching as his friend continued to work. He got up once to stoke the fire again and glanced at the candles throughout the room. Other than that, he remained still. “Roman, I cannot advocate for your working at night.”

“It’s when creativity hits the best.”

“But, you also have many things to do tomorrow. Have you even begun to work on your essays yet? We’ve talked about keeping proper sleeping schedules.”

“I’ve fallen in love with Patton,” Roman said shortly. “That should be reason enough.” He continued drawing and writing.

Logan’s mouth fell slightly agape. He stuttered, “Bu-but you’ve just met him? How can you have fallen in love with him already?”

“He’s just, so lovely and sweet. And no, that pun was very intentional.”

“You’re to be a king, Roman. There are hundreds of suitors out there, and you need to make a choice that will benefit Magnus. Patton is a wonderful man, but you can’t possibly marry him!”

“And why not?” Roman’s voice rose. He stood up from his seat on the floor, furious. “I will be the king. I can marry who I want to. Patton can help Magnus.”

Logan rose too, nowhere near Roman’s height, but staring with a glare that made Roman shrink. “And how is that? How is it possible for a baker to help this country nearing war? He makes bread and puns, Roman.  _ Puns _ . How could you possibly love him within twenty-four hours?”

“I think Patton knows more about love than you do, Sir Moans-a-lot! Maybe you should consider what it is like to think with something other than that big brain of yours!”

The two paused, the crackling fire the only sound in the room. The anger simmering in the air was replaced with great discomfort and offended feelings. With a loud hmph, Logan made for the door. “I’m taking my leave. Get to bed. I’m still expecting your scrolls tomorrow. Send them to my room. I will not be seeing you for class.”

“Logan, wait-”

The door slammed shut, and Roman was alone.


	3. The Weary Traveler

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2487
> 
> TW: Blood mention, thorns/brambles, sword, exhaustion+collapse, loud voices/arguing, death mentions, memory loss mention, character gets ignored on purpose (but not for long), threats of violence, food, blaming character for something they didn’t do

_ -One Year Ago- _

He dragged his feet through the mud, grabbing onto brambles until his hands were scratched and bloodied to help him stand. He was so close. It had been so long. But he was close.

_ Come forth. Find what you seek. The Truth will be revealed to you. Come forth. _

The message played itself over and over again in his head.  _ The Truth. _ What was the Truth? What did he want to know? The voice sounded in his head, engulfing his mind in the words.  _ Truth. Truth. Truth. I seek it.  _ **_The Truth._ **

As he stumbled forward, he ran into a wall. Not a stone, or wooden wall, but a long seemingly endless line of thorns and brambles. The voice still clouding his mind, the traveler traced his Emblem and drew forth a sword, as dark as night, a pale green aura shimmering around it, full of magic. The man knelt with the sword in front of him, took a breath, then slashed through the brambles violently. He advanced, leaving a path of fallen thorns behind him. His arms moved in a frenzy, his legs picking up speed as to allow him to run.

Finally, he emerged in a camp of sorts. Dozens of tents were set up, the large clearing surrounded by the thorny wall. It was silent. No one emerged to greet him.

He panted, tracing his Emblem lightly and the sword shimmering out of existence. His vision blurred, but he was sure that he was seeing two people, cautiously approaching. “Hello there,” Remus Knight said with a grin, and then he collapsed.

-

Remus woke up to loud voices. He was on the ground, staring up at the top of a tent. In silence, he listened to the conversation held outside the tent:

“You Called  _ the prince _ ?! Do you have any idea what you’ve done? He’s going to destroy us all! The royal guard has probably been looking for him, and people have probably seen him! There is no way that no one recognized him as he came from the city!”

“Virgil, everything is under control. Besides, he was randomly selected; I held no control over  _ that _ matter. I simply guided him away from the eyes of the public.”

“I  _ highly  _ doubt that.”

“Everything  _ is _ . When he was Called nearly a year ago, I had him take the long way here. It was the most isolated, unused path.”

“That’s beside  _ the point _ . He could’ve been seen.”

“Everyone thinks he’s dead. It’s what they all think, because of false accusations, rumors, and lies.”

An uneasy silence.

“Please go in and check on him. If he’s awake, ask him if he’d be willing to see me.”

“And if he’s not? What if he just takes out that sword again and tries to kill us all?”

A long pause.

“If not, just let him rest. We’ll find someone to wipe his mind and send him on his way back home.”

Remus sat up and faced the man who entered the tent. The man was only a few inches taller than Remus when he was standing, but it may have also just been because of Remus’ slouch. (So did that make Remus the taller one? Hm.) A black cloak lined with purple draped over his broad shoulders, and in the dim light, the prince could make out a silver pendant hanging around his neck. He looked as if he had little to no sleep in the past few days, dark circles under his eyes, and his ivory skin was blanched.

There was a slight tremble in his step as he approached Remus, avoiding eye contact at all costs. The man remained silent as he approached Remus, avoiding eye contact at all costs. He pulled bandages from his pocket and the prince caught a glimpse of his Emblem: a multicolored lightning cloud. “What’s your name?” the prince asked abruptly. The man ignored him, replacing his bandages with new ones. “What’s your name?” the prince asked again, slightly more aggressively. “I don’t like-”

“Being ignored? Yeah, go figure. You must have gotten used to getting all the attention back at the palace, right?”

Remus pouted.

The man sighed, rolling his gray eyes as he finished wrapping Remus’ hands. “Virgil.”

“Last name?”

“Don’t have one. Everyone just calls me Woods, since I grew up here.”

“You grew up in these woods?”

“Yup.” Virgil stood up, stuffing his hands in his pockets. He shuffled awkwardly on his feet before asking, “Are you ready to meet the Snake?”

Remus cocked his head to the side. “Is anyone ever ready?”

Virgil remained silent. He pulled the prince to his feet and walked him out of the tent. The campgrounds were still empty. The brambles Remus had cut through appeared to have regrown, probably from magic. The wind rustled the tree leaves and the grass murmured warnings and secrets. Despite the stillness of the camp, Remus and Virgil felt it: the eyes of the wild watching them from all around them.

They arrived at the mouth of a cave, covered with vines and branches. They parted begrudgingly for the pair and they entered the room filled with candlelight. The Snake was standing in front of a table, gloved hands gripping the edges. Yellowed maps and wooden figures were strewn across the table, and suddenly, the Snake swooped their hand over it and the maps and figures tumbled to the ground.

“You’ve got a problem with them?” Virgil asked, a small smirk on his face.

The Snake looked over their shoulder, facing the two. For a brief moment, his appearance flickered. Remus swore he first saw a face half covered in green scales, a long scar across the left side with one green and one golden eye. But it must have been the dim candlelight or the fatigue, for when he blinked his eyes furiously, he saw that the face in front of him was rather normal, slightly below average height, auburn hair, and two green eyes.

“Virgil,” the Snake complained stiffly, “Could you at least have told me you’d be bringing him here now?”

“You said to ask him if he wanted to see me,” Virgil shrugged. “And he did.”

Remus took a deep bow, “Your Great Scaliness.” He took a gloved hand in his own, laying a kiss to it. “It is an honor to make your acquaintance.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Won’t happen again.” Remus traced his Emblem and leaned casually on his sword. “Now about the Truth that I was promised-”

“I’ll tell you what you want to know  _ in time _ .”

The prince pouted. “But-”

“ _ In time. _ ” The Snake sat down in a chair on the other side of the room and leaned on the armrest. Their eyes looked at the man in front of him, running up and down for several moments. “You look tired,” they finally noted. “You look different from how others have described.”

“No one can capture my grace in mere words, Mx. Snake.”

The Snake was quiet for a few moments, before saying, “I like you, Remus Knight. For that, I will tell you a secret.” They beckoned Remus closer, who loped over, his sword vanishing in a flash of green. Remus stood in front of the Snake, then without hesitation sat on their lap.

Virgil snorted, barely able to control his laughter. The Snake’s eyes widened, but they did not object.

“Alright then. The secret. Virgil, out.”

“But, you two are all the way over there! There’s no way I can hear you!”

“You heard him! Out! No sneaky snake sneak!” Remus said from his spot on the Snake’s lap. The traveler stuck out a tongue, which Virgil returned as he walked out of the cave. “Your secret?”

“No, Remus. This is  _ your _ secret. Not mine.  _ Yours.  _ A secret which you do not know.”

“Oh,” he squirmed in his seat. “Well. What is it?”

The Snake inhaled deeply and in a single quiet breath said, “You are Remus Knight. You have a younger twin brother, Roman Knight. And you two are the key to the end of a war that will destroy all life in this world.”

Remus sat still. Then he whispered, “That’s it?”

“That’s it,” they repeated. “I do not know the outcome, only that you two will stop it.”

“I was going to punch you in the face, or maybe whack you with my sword, but I was wondering,” Remus stood up, “What was that face I saw? When I came in, I mean. You looked much scalier, and more like a snake.”

The Snake shifted uncomfortably, adjusting to the lack of Remus’ weight on their lap. “That is none of your concern.” Their eyes softened as they looked at Remus with...something. “I’ll tell you in time.

“Now please. Let’s go and get some food. You must be starving.”

-

The wall of brambles surrounded them all, and the sky was grey, but by the time he left the cave with the Snake, Remus saw hundreds of people. They all walked around, faces weary, but happy. “It’s not so bad being here once you get used to it,” Virgil said quietly to Remus, as he joined them to eat. “Contrary to popular belief, the Snake  _ doesn’t _ hypnotize people. And before you ask, that also goes for mind control.” Virgil watched as people smiled and waved at the trio. “They are a really nice person and once you get to know them, you’ll find that they are a real friend.”

“What’s up with their face though?” Remus asked insistently.

Virgil didn’t respond.

The clearing was larger than Remus thought. Of the many people they passed, none seemed to care that Remus was supposed to have crowned king a year ago. They simply smiled and waved, and carried on with-

“So what is everyone doing here?” Remus asked the Snake. “I thought you said something about a war. These people don’t look ready for one at all.”

“I protect them here. They are Called so that they do not have to witness the war that will happen.”

“So why Call me and not my brother as well? Aren’t we the key to stopping it?”

They arrived at a large pavilion, covered with an interlacing web of brambles and roses. Tables were strewn throughout and several groups of people were already sitting down and eating. They smiled and nodded at the trio, who took their food from the central hearth and sat down not so far from the other tables.

Virgil picked at his selection of greens as Remus scarfed down his food hungrily. The Snake didn’t have a plate; they merely watched Remus eat, and waited for time to answer. Once the prince had stopped inhaling his food, the Snake began:

“While it is true that you and your brother are the keys to ending the war, there are things that would have prevented the two of you from working together. Besides, we don’t know who this war is going to be between.”

“I’ve gone over all of the combinations and outcomes,” Virgil explained. “None of them are good. Any of these wars would bring the end to this world.”

“Who’s the biggest threat?” Remus demanded.

Virgil and the Snake looked at each other. “Well,” Virgil said slowly, “The answer is… classified.”

“Virgil, Remus is a friend. I’m sure he means us no harm. Tell him.”

“We just met him. Besides, he’s the-”

“Hush.” The Snake was suddenly stern. “We will not say his title here.” They turned to Remus, “Although I’m trying to keep everyone safe from the war, there are  _ some _ people here who think I’m planning something sinister. I can assure you that this is not the case. But in order to keep  _ you _ safe, we will simply refer to you as a traveler. Your story is that you came from a circus caravan. You performed as an acrobat.”

“Can I be a fire-breather?” the traveler asked, eyes full of excitement. “I wanna be a fire-breather!”

The Snake stiffened again, and Virgil took over. “We don’t want people to ask you to start breathing fire and show your act to them. Acrobat seems more you style anyways, with your frame and the way you walk.”

“So,” the Snake continued, “We’ll also have to get you a change of clothes, maybe cut your hair, and a different weapon if you wish to keep one on hand.”

“But I’ve got my massive sword!” Remus whined. “It’s my baby! In fact,” he added, “If you could tell me who the biggest threat is, I could take my sword and shove it up their-”

“Again, we do not want you drawing any attention to yourself,” The Snake explained. “Your sword would instantly draw attention to you and people would easily figure out your true identity. You are simply Remus. You have no last name. You are just Remus the Traveler.”

“Fine.” Remus eyed Virgil’s plate, still with some food left. Virgil shrugged and handed him the plate, which was clean in minutes. The traveler wiped his mouth with his sleeve and put his elbows on the table, resting his head on his hands. “So, who’s the biggest threat?”

The Snake answered coolly, “A woman I met a very long time ago. The person who has framed me for countless crimes.”

“And her name is?”

“She has no name, at least, not one that I’m aware of.”

With this answer, Remus was almost completely satisfied. “One more question for you, Mx. Snake. Do you often treat the new people you’ve called to dinner, or am I a special exception since I’m the prince?”

They smiled. “You are a special case, but it’s not because you are the prince.”

“Is it because I’m the key to everything?”

They laughed, the sound surprising Remus; they were so much more relaxed. Their laughter was neither sinister nor ridiculing. It was simply laughter. The Snake looked at Remus, and finally answered, “You are not the key to  _ everything _ , but you certainly are the key to some things.”

“Stars you two should just get a room already,” Virgil groaned. He stood up and started to leave when Remus called out to him from across the pavilion. 

“Virgil, I wanna fancy mustache!”

The pavilion went quiet. Eyes looked between the two, and Virgil stood awkwardly in the spotlight. It was his turn to speak. “Okay, fine,” he muttered, his voice carrying across the silent pavilion. “Have your mustache! Someone will give you a haircut later, I don’t care! I’m gonna go somewhere else!”

He was about to leave again when he stopped in his tracks. The Snake and the traveler watched Virgil, who stood frozen in place again, gears turning in his mind. All of a sudden he ran back to the two and in a hushed voice said, “On second thought, someone might recognize you. I’d better give you that haircut.”


	4. The Vigilant Witch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 1642
> 
> Tw: Knife, Mild Violence, Calling Someone Crazy, Swearing, Scopophobia, Crying, Orphan, Death of Parents, Stripping mention (no sexual references intended)

“So I was thinking of something not swoopy like my brother’s. He has this thing where he thinks that the swoopier his hair, the more fabulous he looks, which we all know is wrong. I’m the better looking one. Maybe I could go for a poofy look. Poof and floof! Oh, then my clothes should be poofy and floofy!”

“You want your  _ clothes _ to match your  _ hair _ ?” Virgil asked, holding a small knife steady in his hands. “Listen, you can worry about your clothes later. Right now, I’m trying to get your hair cut so people don’t recognize you. So what’s it gonna be?”

“Poof and floof!”

Virgil raised an eyebrow. “So the same as you have now?”

“No, poof and floof!”

“Listen, I have no clue what you’re talking about. Just describe it to me. Please,” he added hastily.

The traveler pouted. Then without warning, he spun around and smacked Virgil’s hand. “Gimme the knife!”

“No! You aren’t dumb enough so that you’d stab someone for a hair cut, are you?” Virgil screeched, leaping back several feet and dropping the knife on the dirt.

“If you can’t cut my hair, I’ll cut it myself!”

“You’re crazy!”

“Fuck yes I am!”

Ignoring the knife on the ground, Remus got up and began to chase Virgil around the tent. For several minutes they did this, until Remus jumped onto Virgil, wrapping his arms around the other’s neck. With the sudden weight on his back, Virgil’s legs wobbled and they came crashing down onto the ground. The two panted heavily before making eye contact with each other and cracking up with laughter.

Virgil wiped tears from his eyes as he sat up. “So you just wanna cut your hair yourself?”

Remus stayed on the floor, staring up at the canvas roof of the tent. “Uh-huh,” he said. After a moment, he asked, “So you grew up in the woods? What did your parents do?”

Virgil crossed his legs and thought. He stared at the dirt and a few blades of yellowed grass. “I don’t know what my biological parents did, but I was raised by two witches for as long as I could remember. They said I was found during the middle of the night while the two of them were setting up camp in the middle of a storm. They were about to build their home. It wasn’t too far from here actually.”

“Was it called the Midnight Forest then?” Remus asked.

Virgil shook his head. “No, it was just a forest. Nothing special about it. Back then, there were leaves on the trees and sunlight would shine through in the most beautiful way that you could ever imagine. I never saw any of those creatures people talk about these days. To be honest, I’ve never even seen any creatures in here. Ever. But you can never be too careful.

“I was taught that early on by my mom. I don’t know where the rumors about creatures living in the forest came from, but I’m pretty disappointed that there isn’t some sort of cryptid creature living around here.”

“Oh my gosh same! I wanna meet some cryptids!” Remus stood up and bent his knees as he walked around menacingly. “As you walk through the woods, you feel as if eyes are watching you. And as you turn around to look over your shoulder, bam!” He leapt up into the air, landing in front of Virgi, who flinched before laughing. “A good scare! So,” he said, as he sat down again, “Tell me about your parents.”

“Well, my mom was the one who named me Virgil, after she spent all night standing guard, while my ren constructed the basic frame of the cottage. I was told that after a few days, the cottage was pretty much done, and the two of them decided to take me in. I grew up surrounded by nature, and they’d show me their magic.”

“Why’d they have to move to the middle of the forest? This world is made of magic.”

“I-I don’t know. They never really wanted to talk about it when I asked. I think it’s just that people were afraid. Everyone knows about the Grand Mage and Council of Wizards; those people have control and grew in power because they were public about how they helped the world. But when it came to people practicing their own craft, independently or in smaller groups, people became afraid of what they didn’t know.

“But my parents always told me to be myself. And look where that got me!” Virgil laughed darkly. Noticing Remus’ stare, he quickly added, “I mean, I’m hiding under my cloak all the time. No one really knows much about me. Save for the Snake, and well, you. Huh. I’ve barely known you, but I’ve been able to be so open with you. Weird.”

The traveler grinned. “What can I say? I’ve got such a likable personality!”

“Yeah.” Virgil rolled up his sleeve, revealing a multicolored cloud. “When I got my Emblem, my parents told me that I was going to do amazing things. I remember, the first time I traced my Emblem, I was so excited sparks flew everywhere. Literally. Pure buzzing energy leapt from my fingers. I was so shocked, and suddenly that energy formed a storm cloud. At that point, I was worried my power was just to make storm clouds, and I cried. Then, it started raining! The cloud dissipated and my hands were covered in rain water. It was amazing! I told my parents about my powers, and they were so proud of me! They were gonna show me more of what to do with storm magic.”

Suddenly, Virgil bolted up out of his seat. “Oh shit! I can’t believe I forgot!” He fumbled with nothing in his hands for a moment before looking nervously at Remus. “I’ll be right back. No wait, you should come with me. No, but I’ll be quick. Just-”

“Just say what’s on your mind!” Remus interrupted. “That never fails me! What did you forget!” 

“You need gloves Remus! Or some long sleeves?” Virgil gestured wildly with his hands indicating ‘something’ or ‘anything’. The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t find them, only increasing his frustration and worry, “Something that will cover your Emblem!” He finally managed to spit out! “People will see and ask, or worst of all, they’ll recognize you!”

“And what’s so bad about being me? I thought your parents just told you to be yourself!”

“Argh! I don’t have time for this!” Virgil ripped a strip of fabric from the hem of his cloak and threw it at Remus, barely noticing as it fell limply to the ground. “Just, take it! Wrap it around your wrist or something I don’t care.” His voice trailed off, and he looked into Remus’ eyes. They were a ruby red. Not from crying, but the pupils were just a dark red, perhaps less ruby, more crimson. Strange and unusual. “I’m sorry,” Virgil said. “I’m sorry for yelling. I… I shouldn’t have yelled and just thrown some fabric at you.” He swayed on his feet, looking down at his cloak. “I just ruined this.”

Remus was silent, which bothered Virgil. In the few hours he had gotten to know Remus, he quickly learned that when Remus had to say something, he would speak. Going silent meant he had nothing to say. Virgil winced at the thought, and started to walk off, muttering apologizes when a voice said, “Stop.”

Virgil turned. Remus was shaking his head. “You’re really anxious about me, I get it. I’ll be fine though. I’ve got a big ass sword and this new mace!” Remus held up the mace that was perhaps half his size, and hefted it upon his shoulder. He grinned as he picked up the torn fabric. He flipped it around and around, almost mesmerized by the black and the purple lining. “I’m surprised you were able to rip off the lining. Looks like good fabric.”

“It was,” the witch muttered, sitting back down on the ground and burying his face in his hands. “J- The Snake got it for me.”

“Where from?” Remus asked. “I like the black. I don’t think purple’s really my color though.”

Virgil shrugged, still hiding his face in his hands. “I dunno. They didn’t say anything; they just gave it to me.”

“Well I think it was a lovely gift! You know what, I’m going to ask them to get me all of my clothes now! I’mma strip, walk over there, and ask the Snake to show me where they’re hiding all the goods!”

“Pfftt. You can’t just walk over there like that, Remus.”

“Too late! I’m already-”

“Stars, Remus! Don’t!” Virgil lifted his head up, but there was Remus, still fully clothed (thank the stars) and smiling delightedly at Virgil. The traveler leaned forward, maintaining eye contact as he did so. He held out a finger, and touched Virgil’s nose.

“Boop. All better now.”

Virgil didn’t realize he was crying until Remus took the strip of fabric and started dabbing his eyes. “There, there. It’ll be okay. Or not. Who knows. You certainly don’t.” Virgil grimaced as the traveler set down his mace and sat next to him. “No one knows what lies in the future, but you shouldn’t think too much about it. Why limit yourself to what might happen? You gotta just make the future you want to happen yourself!”

“Wow, that was probably the least crazy thing I’ve heard you say today.”

“I am the proud owner of this mace, Virgil, and I am  _ not _ afraid to use it!”

They sat in silence, content. As Remus leaned his head on Virgil’s shoulder, he closed his eyes, and quietly added,

“On people other than you.”


	5. The Friend’s Advice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 3387
> 
> TW: Death mentions, orphans, fires, crying

Roman woke up late into the afternoon. On a normal day, Logan would’ve walked in and scolded him awake. Logan, however, was not present. The memories of last night’s events washed over Roman, and he sighed. “I don’t want to do it,” he said aloud to no one, “But I have to.”

The prince got up, took his scrolls, and marched through the corridors until he reached Logan’s quarters. He gave a sharp rap on the door, and to his surprise was answered. “Come in.”

Logan’s quarters were similar to Roman’s, in design and tidiness. However, in place of the general clutter of papers and scrolls that could never be found when required to and reappearance of said papers and scrolls when least expected, Logan had a system. Everything was in a harmonic balance of clutter; and the tutor was at the center of it all, sitting at a brilliant hardwood desk, writing some fancy medical jargon that Roman couldn’t understand.

Writing was strewn across walls, formulas and notes that were unlikely to be read in the near future. The windows were shut, the heavy deep blue curtains still. The bed was made, and the workbenches in their usual organized clutter. Roman stood in front of the desk, shuffling from foot to foot as Logan ignored him. Finally, he cleared his throat.

“Ahem. Professor Magiste. It is I, Prince Roman Knight of Magnus, and I am here to deliver my finished assignments.”

Logan peered over his glasses, clearly uninterested. “And?”

“And what else? Can’t a student see his teacher to deliver his assignment?”

The tutor sighed as he took the scrolls and laid them on his desk. He sat down, staring Roman down before asking, “Why else are you here?”

“We should probably see Emile.”

-

The sky was grey, and the glowing walls of buildings flickered. Torches were being lit, as to allow the mages who controlled the light to rest. The prince tried not to slip in the slick mud; although it was still cloudy, a heavy downpour had occurred last night. The tutor kept a frown upon his face as they marched along to see Emile.

Now, Emile Picani was married to Remy Hypnos. However, before their marriage, Emile worked as a sort of therapist, using the power of his Emblem to see the issues in relationships. He liked to joke that he was the real couple fixer-upper that everyone needed and that Remy was the first person in which he realized that there would never be a need to do some ‘fixer-uppering’. Now that he was married, Emile spent most of his time sitting around Remy’s bakery, occasionally helping out the distressed family members, friends, and partners who entered the shop.

At last, they arrived at The Baker’s Hearth. Workers and customers ran in and out of the store, and the pair simply followed the tide that pulled them in. Patton was at the workbench, showing some children the best way to roll out the dough. Everything was smudged with flour and a mustache of milk was above Patton’s lips. Roman giggled and Logan frowned disappeared, a warm smile appearing at the sight.

“Oh stars! I didn’t even notice that you two were there!” Patton cried out as the two approached the workbench. “I’m so sorry! Is there anything I can do for you today? Jelly tart?”

“No thank you, Patton,” Roman smiled. “Can we see Emile?”

“Oh, sure!” The baker looked warily at each of the two men in front of him, sensing the slight tension between the two. “Um, do you want me to take you upstairs, or…?”

“We can find our own way to his room, but thank you, Patton.” Logan marched behind the counter and walked up the stairs. Roman gave an apologetic smile to Patton, as he hurried on behind the teacher.

Emile’s door was open, and by the time Roman had reached the room, Logan was already seated on Emile’s bed. Emile himself was sitting on a small wooden stool, a piece of parchment and quill in his hand. He looked slightly better, the circles under his eyes lighter and less prominent. “Good afternoon, Prince Roman! It’s a surprise to see you two here. I’ve got the feeling that you want to talk to me about something. Do you mind closing the door and sitting down so we can talk this out in private? You can sit on the bed next to Logan, and we’ll get started.”

Roman entered cautiously, shutting the door. He sat several feet away from Logan, teetering on the edge of the bed. “So,” Emile began, “Do you mind telling me what happened that caused you two to want to visit me?”

The pair eyed each other, no doubt trying to figure out how to explain their side of the story in the best possible light. For themselves, of course.

“Well,” Roman started, “I was up late at night, working on a few projects that I thought would be helpful to put in place as king. Logan suddenly decided to show up, and tried to reprimand me for not doing my homework early and on time.”

“Falsehood,” the teacher said calmly. “I was reprimanding you for not adhering to the sleeping schedule we had set up for you years ago when Remus was first Called. Besides,” he continued, “You’re completely excluding the fact that you insulted me.”

“ _ You _ said that I couldn’t follow my dreams and marry the love of my life!”

“The love of your life who you had just met not 24 hours before.”

Emile tried to make a calming gesture with his hands, after furiously scribbling down notes. “Alright, alright, alright then. Let’s try to avoid ‘you’ statements right now, okay? If it’s okay with you two, I’m going to use my Emblem, alright?” The two men nodded, and Emile rolled up his sleeves. He traced the figure of the concentric hearts, which began to glow a pale pink. “Hands.” Emile gently held each of the two’s outstretched hands and closed his eyes.

Searching for feelings, missed and strong connections, memories and the like is no easy job. A person’s perception of a certain event may differ from another’s. It takes a precision of the mind and an understanding of the persons being searched. Though Emile showed no visible signs of strain, his mind was abuzz with memories and thoughts, carefully trying to pick apart fact from fiction and finding ways to connect all of the dots. After a long time, he dropped the hands of his friends, and released a low whistle.

“Wow.”

Emile traced his Emblem and sat up to face the two men on the bed. “There’s not enough communication in your relationship. Both of you are hiding something from each other, and those things are crucial to your relationships, and not just the one between you two.” He jotted down notes on his parchmen as he spoke, “Communication is vital to every relationship, whether it be between friends, family, or partners. There are plenty of other factors, but you two are missing this big one. It’s not that uncommon, but that doesn’t mean it’s an issue that should be discussed and hopefully resolved. Roman, do you want to tell Logan something?”

“Lo,” Roman began. “I don’t have anything to say to you. You already know that I love Patton and that’s that.”

Logan huffed, crossing his arms, unsatisfied. Emile frowned, but nodded, jotting notes down on a fresh piece of parchment, “We’ll come back to that. Logan, do you want to say something to Roman?”

The teacher stuttered for a moment, trying to gather his words. “Well, um. There’s nothing I can really, I mean there’s that  _ one _ thing, but-” Emile raised a brow. “Well, honesty is always best. Roman, I had feelings for Patton a long time ago.”

“Oh. I see.”

“It was rather silly. It wasn’t romantic, but I just loved him. Philia, affectionate love. I’m happy to be friends with him. He is a wonderful person.”

“Can I ask how you two met?”

Logan began tapping his fingers on his leg, deep in thought. “I grew up reading books. My mother and father owned a bookshop in the center of Illustris, the neighboring city. It was owned by my grandmother and my grandmother’s grandmother and back and back until it was first owned by our ancestor Wenfia. We lived happily, until I was eight.”

“Logan, would you like me to leave the room?” Emile asked unesaily. “This seems kinda personal.”

“Um, yes please. I mean no harm, but this would be best to be spoken between Roman and I, correct?”

“It would be for the best.” Emile rose, taking his parchment and quill and making to the door. “Don’t be afraid to call for me; I’ll be right outside.” He gently closed the door and the two were alone.

“What happened when you were eight?” Roman asked quietly. Logan got up and began pacing the room. The prince’s eyes followed him around the room, until the teacher eventually settled upon leaning by the window, looking outside.

“When I was eight, my parents perished in a fire. No one realized what was happening. I woke up, smelling smoke. I tried to wake up my parents, but I couldn’t find them. Fortunately, I managed to climb out the window and into the street, but the entire shop was ablaze by then. Neighboring houses were also on fire. I yelled. People had woken and gotten out of their homes, but my parents never came out.

“I later found out that many other houses had caught fire as well in the city. There didn’t seem to be any correlation between them. No one knew who started the fires. There was a search for the culprit, but they were never found. Everyone said it was the Snake.”

“So, how does Patton relate to all of this?”

Logan looked at the door, as if expecting the baker to come in and explain what happened to Roman for him. He didn’t come. Hesitantly, Logan continued,

“Patton lost his father and siblings in the fires. We were both young; I was eight, and he was nine. We met each other, and we got along well. I taught everything I could remember from the books I read in my parents’ shop, and he showed me kindness, love, and hope.” Logan paused, staring fondly into the past. The smell of sweet pastries. The laughter of two young boys. The feelings of warmth and joy that spread when he thought about Patton.

“One day, only a week or two after the fires, Patton asked me if I wanted to leave with him, and go to Magnus. He said that though there were so many memories here, most were quite painful for him. I didn’t know much about him at the time and didn’t understand what he was talking about. But I was... attached to him, and I agreed. We took the few belongings we had gotten over the past week and walked here, to Castellum.

“We didn’t walk the entire way,” Logan quickly added, at Roman’s dropped jaw. “Patton talked with everyone on our path, and I negotiated with some of them to let us ride in their wagons. In return, I taught any children the driver had with them to read and write, and Patton lightened the mood with jokes and games. 

“When we finally reached Castellum, Patton and I met a lovely couple who took us in. They were bakers, and owned this very building. Patton decided to become their apprentice. I preferred to walk around the city and explore. I would go to different shops and learn about what they sold, where they came from, and the lives of the people who sold them. Even with our new lives, we grew so close, Patton and I. I grew to become a physician and he grew to be a baker.

“Once I was summoned to the castle to take care of the king and you and Remus, I always visited Patton in the early morning. Even when he took over this bakery, he still made time for me. In the little time we had together every day, we managed to grow even closer, cherishing those moments. As of late, with the upcoming coronation and whatnot, I’ve visited less and less, and well...” Here he took a deep breath, pressing his palms together as he thought before admitting, “With you marrying him, I suppose, I was simply worried.”

“‘Worried?’” Roman asked. “Worried about what?”

Logan sighed, blankly staring out of the window out at the street below. “I was worried that you’d take Patton away, and he’d want to stay with you and not me. I’m merely a tutor now, and you’re the prince. You will be king soon, and your personality is so much more open and confident. Sure, your ego is as big as your sword, (“Hey…”) but you are deeply passionate about helping others. You want what is best for this kingdom, and you have so much passion and ambition. Meanwhile, I’m the failure of a genius who couldn’t save the king’s life.”

“You’re not a failure, Logan. It’s not-”

He was returned with tear-filled eyes. “It  _ is _ my fault your father died, Roman. I couldn’t save him. For all of the information I knew, I could not save him. I read every single text that I could and this ridiculous _ Emblem _ and it’s ridiculous ‘powers’ couldn’t help me save his life! I’m supposed to retain everything I read with this Emblem, but I didn’t have a single clue as to what ailed your father! I couldn’t save your father. I couldn’t save Remus. I can’t save anyone. Everyone in Castellum blames me, and they’re right to do so. And now, I’m always afraid you will do something rash, and that I won’t be able to save you.”

Logan buried his face in his hands. “I can’t believe I told you all of that. It’s so...relieving? I don’t tell anyone anything, and I just feel...awful.”

“I can imagine that.” Roman stood up and met Logan at the window. “I don’t blame you for what happened, Lo. Some people might, but you did what you could, and  _ I _ know you. I know how hard you worked to try and help. It wasn’t your fault. It was unexpected and new. The same goes for Remus. He was like that. He loved the Unknown, and all of the opportunities the world had to offer. You are human, and you are not only allowed, but encouraged to make mistakes. It’s the only way that we can learn.

“You don’t have to hide everything from me, but you don’t have to tell me everything either. It’s your choice. Emile said that communication is important, and I believe that. At the same time, you are allowed to have your secrets. I know I have mine. I mean, don’t get me wrong; secrets can be really annoying sometimes, but I get it. You can keep them if you want.” Logan looked up to see a distant prince, taking his turn to look out the window and into the street.

“It’s just that once those secrets weigh you down and ache in your chest, only dragging down your heart and making your head spin and ache, it’s really hard to keep them. If you ever want to tell me something and get stuff off your chest, you can come to me.

“And you’re right; I barely know Patton. But Lo, I love him, and to be honest, I think he kinda likes me too. If we ever end up together, I know that he will still care about you, just as much as you clearly care about him.”

Logan smiled sadly, cleaning his glasses on his sleeve. “Thank you, Roman.”

“Well, now that that’s resolved, I guess we don’t have to do anything more, right?” Roman chuckled awkwardly. “I mean, I guess there is  _ something _ I should tell you…”

“Do you want to?”

The prince bit his lip, deep in thought. “It’s only fair.”

“You won’t spiral into an epic monologue, will you?” Logan joked.

“No, not now. I’ll try to be as brief as possible.” He inhaled deeply, and in a single breath said, “I don’t think I want to be king. I know, the coronation is in eleven days, but I don’t want to be king. Not without Remus. We are both needed to fill the hole left by our father, and yeah.”

Logan went silent for a moment. With a perplexed look on his face, he asked, “Are you saying that you want to form a diarchy? A diiumvirate?”

“Yes…? If that’s what it’s called?”

“I see. Hmm. I understand where you’re coming from.” The teacher began pacing the room again, leaving the prince speechless by the window. “It’s like I said yesterday; you two complement each other, and are two parts of a whole. The only problem is that Remus has gone to the Snake. We don’t know where he could possibly be, even if he was alive. Also, this monarchy has been the system this government was based upon for centuries. The land could sprout into chaos.” Cogs turned rapidly in Logan’s mind as he thought. So many possibilities and so many options. “What I suggested yesterday was merely that: a suggestion. It would be highly unlikely and would mostly likely be unsustainable.” He stopped and turned with a swoosh of his cloak. “Perhaps we should discuss this later. Shall we call Emile in?”

The prince nodded, dumbstruck as he moved to the bed . Logan opened the door for Emile, and they sat down once again. “So, I hope your conversation went well? Did ya get through all the stuff you wanted to get through?” The two agreed, and Emile began scribbling on his notes. “Alrighty then. If you two want, we can meet back again in another week or two so we can check in, see how everything has progressed. If you two ever need to speak to me sooner, you know where to find me. I don’t plan on leaving the shop any time soon.”

“Emile, we need to pay you back somehow,” Logan began.

“He’s right; you’ve really helped us through a lot, and you’ve gone through so much recently.”

Emile smiled gently, “My friends, you don’t have to pay me back in any way; I’ve been doing this for free for years now.”

“I’ve got it!” Roman declared. “I’ll go out and find Remy for you! I’ll hunt down the Snake and I'll get him back! You healed our relationship, so we shall bring your lover back!”

“Roman, you do understand what you’re suggesting, correct?” Logan’s glasses lay low on the bridge of his nose as he peered at the prince, comprehending completely what he intended to do. “No one has ever seen the Snake, and no one knows where the people they have Called go to. For all we know, they could be going to a location different from where the Snake themself is hiding.”

“And Roman,” began Emile, “I wouldn’t want you to be going on such a dangerous and potentially very long quest so close to your coronation date!”

Roman shrugged, “They’ve held it off for 2 years; I’m sure they can wait another week or two.”

The teacher waved his finger aggressively, “No, no, no, no, no no no no nonononono. No.” He rubbed the bridge of his nose as his eyes shut tightly. With a strange blend of frustration, pride, and exasperation, he said, “You can’t just leave on such a quest without any notion of where you’re going.”

“I’ll do research. Your countless assignments have _real_ ly helped my research skills.”

“You have responsibilities here. We don’t know when you’d possibly return.”

“Then Dice would become king.”

“It’s more complicated than that.” Logan sighed.

“What I believe Logan is trying to say, Roman, is that we don’t want to see you getting hurt.”

They all stood quietly in the room for several moments before Roman announced, “I will be leaving in one day.  _ After _ I talk to Dice,” he added, eyeing Logan. “And after I say my goodbyes to some very important people.”


	6. The Calling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 1695
> 
> TW: Brief mention of illness, fire

As he and Roman left The Baker’s Hearth with a simple wave goodbye to Patton and Emile, Logan looked at the prince skeptically. “No confession of love to Patton before you go?”

“Well, I can’t leave without a parting gift! I’ll come back tomorrow.”

“Very well then.”

They walked back to the palace, the air between them much more relaxed than when they first left. Logan ventured up to the gates with a nod at the guards, when he noticed Roman lagging behind. 

“Well?” he called out.

“I’ll be in a minute. Have to run to the gardens!” the prince called as he hurried through the courtyard, earning more stares than usual. The teacher sighed, and entered the castle alone, allowing Roman to hurry off by himself to the gardens.

The grounds were still damp after the recent downpours, and mud caked the boots of Roman’s shoes as he ran. He smiled at the guards who eyed him and the servants who whispered. He had a job to do, and their opinion of him didn’t matter.

_ Walk with confidence and walk with grace. _

_ There is no use in showing a grim face. _

_ Just smile and laugh like you’re having fun. _

_ Their watchful eyes will disappear when the day is done. _

The recreational gardens were vast, and were actually not built until several years ago. They were among the last things that King Creon had ordered to be built before his sudden illness. Roman and Remus would spend hours running around and exploring together. Since Remus’ Calling, Roman had spent more time there than usual, tending to the plants, drawing flowers and trees, or simply lying down and staring up at the sky. It was the one place where he was safe from prying eyes, and those who did see him we usually kind and treated him well.

Now, he slowed down through the entrance, and waved at the gardeners. Roman strolled around, commenting to the gardeners about the weather and how the plants were growing.

“Too much rain,” one said, shaking his head. “Things won’t grow as well, and the roots will probably be damaged if this weather keeps up.”

Roman chewed his lip. “Maybe we could build a tent? Something to cover the gardens?’

“The gardens are too big, your highness.”

“We could do multiple tents, or maybe a big enchantment. I’ll talk to Dice about it.”

“Thank you, Prince Roman.”

The prince smiled and nodded, and he continued walking. He stopped in front of a rose bush. He plucked a brilliant red rose, held it under his cloak and ran back inside the palace.

-

Alastor “Dice” Veritas was the regent put in place since the death of King Creon four years ago. He was only meant to serve until Remus came of age and was put in place as king; however, since Remus was Called, his regency was extended two more years to allow Roman to have time to train under Logan. Dice wasn’t complaining though. He loved “judgy.” He always made sure that the kingdom had enough to survive, and always stood by his many decisions, some, no, many unnecessary. The people often didn’t approve, but that didn’t matter. After all, he was right. They were wrong. Shut up. But with the coming coronation, his attention was drawn less and less to his duties and more to what scarf he ought to wear to Roman’s coronation. And now, in Roman’s chambers, he was seated in a chair with Logan by his side.

“So, you’re telling me that you want to go on a quest to find your brother and a villager you’re friends with.” He adjusted his glasses and many scarves for the tenth time in their meeting, as he sighed. “Stars, Roman. What got into you to make such a decision?”

“I needed to help!” Roman quickly explained. “Emile, Remy’s husband, was really upset over his Calling; and he can’t make a living unless he either starts charging people for his therapy, which he  _ doesn’t _ want to do, or he gets Remy back and the bakery is repaired. Oh, and I think we should send someone to repair the bakery. Oh,  _ and _ I talked to a gardener, and he said that the rain hasn’t been treating the plants well, and we should definitely get someone down there to put up some tents or a charm to protect the gardens.”

Dice tuttered, and leaned his head on his hands. “Anything else, I should be aware of, Prince Roman?”

“Um, nope. That’s it.”

The regent eyed the teacher next to him, who merely shrugged, as if saying, “He’s been like this all day.”

“Well, I guess we’re done here,” Dice declared as he stood up.

“So you’ll do it?” Roman and Logan asked simultaneously, the former excited and the latter tense.

Dice looked around the prince’s room, examining its arrangement. “Well, I suppose so. I’ve been able to do ‘judge-y’ for years. I’m sure I can handle a few more extra days. Tell me where the bakery is and I’ll get a group to repair it. I’ll head down there myself to ensure it meets city standards.” He poured a cup of tea from the set on Roman’s desk and took a long sip. “As for the gardens, I’ll try to get Grand Mage to set something up.”

“Ohmystarsthankyou!” Roman rushed to hug the regent, who promptly sidestepped him, holding his teacup close.

“Watch the mud!”

-

Roman woke up to dim lights, the heavy crimson curtain to his balcony waving violently. The wind whipped and howled, and thunder rumbled in the distance. Another storm was coming. He sighed and rolled over to go back to sleep. Not two beats later, he burst out of bed.

“Patton!”

The prince grabbed the rose on his bedside and without bothering to brush his hair, threw on some dark clothing and hurried out into the rain. There were few people out in the main courtyard. The guards trying to not get uprooted from their positions failed to notice Roman slipping out past the drawbridge and into the village.

Though their first encounter was only three days ago, Roman knew how to reach The Baker’s Hearth easily. The rose kept dry under his cloak, he ran to the bakery only to find it dark. Gone was the quiet chatter, and smell of freshly baked goods. No children ran in and out of the doors; no one was in sight.

“Excuse me!” Roman called out to a passing woman. She turned, scowling in the cold. “Do you know where the baker of this fine establishment went?”

“Beats me.” She walked off bristiling, no doubt annoyed at being stopped for 10 seconds in the rain.

Roman’s fear intensified. Where did Patton go?

He tried to peer between the curtain cracks and spotted some movement inside. He quickly rapped upon the door, calling out, “Hello? Patton? Anyone?”

After a few moments, the door slowly creaked open, and large round eyes peered out from within the bakery, “Mr. Patton says we can’t open the door for strangers when he’s not home.”

“So Patton isn’t home?” Roman asked quickly. “Do you know where he is?”

The child shook their head quickly, opening the door slightly wider. “We all woke up late today, and looked around the bakery. He’s not here. We dunno where he went.”

Concern and worry grew in the pits of Roman’s stomach. “What about Mr. Emile. Mr. Emile Picani. Is he here?”

They shook their head. “I dunno where he is. No big people are inside.”

“How many kids are here?”

“I dunno. A lotta them.”

Roman crouched down, to eye level with the child, and looked into their eyes intently. “I’m going to find Patton and Emile, and someone to take care of you for the time being. Okay?”

They nodded quickly. “Okay Mr. Prince.”

“You know I’m the prince?” Roman raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“Uh huh! Mr. Patton talked a lot about you last night.”

“Huh. That-that’s nice.”

-

“I can’t believe you just left this morning, Roman. The coronation is in ten days, and you’re leaving in a few days. We don’t have time for you to wander off like that!”

Being scolded by Dice and Logan was the last thing Roman wanted to deal with this morning. Nevertheless, he sat in front of the regent and teacher in the Grand Hall. The fireplaces roared, as servants occasionally hurried in to stoke the fire and light torches.

“Stars, Roman. It’s not prince-like to just run away without notifying any guards or getting someone to accompany you,” Dice scolded. “It’s cold out there.”

“But I wore my cloak!”

“You still could’ve gotten ill,” Logan said quietly, his voice barely any louder than the fires. “That would’ve stopped you from traveling at all.”

“I had to say goodbye to Patton.”

The hall fell silent, aside from the fires and whipping wind outside. Dice leaned to Logan and quietly whispered, “Who’s Patton?”

“A very close friend of the prince’s,” Logan said quietly.

“Oh…”

Roman fingered the rose still in his hands, avoiding the other men’s eyes.

“Did you say goodbye?” Dice asked.

“He was Called.”

“‘He was Called?’” Logan repeated. “The Snake summoned him?”

“The bakery was empty. I asked around, but no one knew where he went.”

“What about Emile?” Logan demanded. “Where did he go? Did you ask him where Patton went?”

“He was gone too,” Roman said quietly. “There’s a bunch of kids in there, with no one to watch them. We need someone there to take care of them. And I need to find Patton and Emile. Either they were Called, or one was Called and the other followed of their own free will. Either way, I  _ need  _ to go, Dice.”

Throughout all of this, Dice remained silent. Finally, he commented, “I think this is only a greater reason for you to go.” Logan and Roman looked up at Dice, amazed. “You two clearly care a lot about these people. It only makes sense. I’ll find someone to take care of the kids and watch the building.

“Pack your things, Roman. You’re going on a quest.”


	7. The Start of the Journey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2659
> 
> TW: food mention, unintentionally hurting a friend

Everything flew into the satchel Logan held, his arms outstretched as Roman threw various articles of clothing pouches of different sizes and color into the bag. The teacher sighed as the bag grew heavier and heavier, seemingly endless. It was only at the point where the satchel was too heavy, even for Logan, when he said, “I don’t believe that Patton will require you to bring this much, Roman.”

“Nonsense! Logan, this is my lover I’m talking about here! I can’t leave him to be in The Snake’s clutches. I have a map and a compass. All I have to do is take my horse, and follow the way that the Called have been taking to find Patton!”

“And how do you intend on finding out _which_ _direction_ the Called have been traveling? Have you done your research, as you said you would?”

At this Roman faltered. He chuckled nervously, scratching his head, “Well, you see, I was thinking about just talking to everyone I meet on the road and hoping they’ll have seen Patton on their journey and-”

Logan dropped the bag onto Roman’s bed with a heavy _ thump _ and sat down. He looked at his friend with concern, the rare haze of worry clouding his eyes. “Are you sure that this will work, Roman?” The prince made his way to the four poster bed, sitting down next to Logan. “Everyone knows who you are. You will be bound to meet bandits and thieves. If we lose you only ten days before you are to be king…” A sad chuckle escaped Logan’s mouth as he turned to make eye contact with Roman. “ _ That _ would certainly be a tragedy.”

“Then come with me.”

Logan sputtered. “I’m sorry,  _ what _ ?”

“Come with me.” Roman stood up and began to pace the room. “I have ten days to find Patton, Emile and Remy, then come back. As much as I hate to admit it,” he turned to smile at Logan, “I can’t do this alone. Please, I’m not asking you as your future king; I’m asking as your friend.”

The words turned themselves over and over in Logan’s mind. “How could I possibly be of any use to you? My Emblem is nothing compared to yours. All I can do is read.”

“Logan, you’re so much more intelligent than I. You can read any map, find any food, learn new languages faster than me, and tend to people wonderfully.” Logan shifted uncomfortably at the comments. “Listen,” Roman held Logan’s hands in his own, smiling, “You are just as, if not, even more capable than I am. I need your help.”

The tutor looked into Roman’s eyes, calculating and turned his words over in his mind before simply responding with a “Fine.”

The prince raised an eyebrow. “Wait, really? That’s all it took. You’re usually so stubborn; I thought it’d take longer than that. Maybe a few more days of knocking on your door, a week at most…”

Logan stood up. “We can’t leave Patton to be in the Snake’s hands. Besides, we couldn’t possibly put off leaving for a ‘few more days.’ Let’s repack your things, then we will go, and we will find our friend.”

Suddenly, the door burst open. A frazzled Dice stood in the doorway, glasses and scarf askew. “ _ Both _ of you are leaving? Without consulting me?” He recomposed himself quickly before marching over, huffing. “Stars, am I really needed around here to tell you two  _ everything _ you need to do?”

“Ummmmmmmm, yes.” The two said simultaneously.

“Dice, you can stay in charge by yourself for a week or two, right?” Roman asked, nervously.

The regent looked between the prince and the tutor. He eyed the large bag filled with more bags, then finally sighed. “I already said I would, didn’t I? I suppose I can work without Logan here. But you need to be back by the coronation. If not, we’ll have a problem on our hands. Also, change your outfits; that isn’t appropriate travel apparel.” Dice left Logan and Roman to look down at their clothes and wonder what was ‘appropriate travel apparel.’

-

“So where are we going?” Roman asked. Logan had decided that traveling by horse would be best, so he and the prince mounted their steeds Polaris and Eros and set off several hours ago. They had long since left the walls of Castellum, and were now on a dirt path running south. Alongside one side the road ran a long line of apple trees, which bent their branches down the roads, bearing tart yellow apples. Along the other was a vast field of strong smelling sage, which stretched on as far as the eye could see. Farms were far off and distant, and they were seemingly alone.

“A tavern, the Keeper’s Tavern, specifically.”

“Who’s the Keeper?”

“A person I met a long time ago when Patton and I were travelling into Castellum. I’m not sure if fae still own the place since it was about a decade ago when I stopped there, but fae took care of many travelers. The tavern wasn't doing poorly in business; plenty of people stopped there.”

“And how does this help us find everyone?”

“Halt!”

The pair suddenly looked up to find themselves stopped by a band of bandits on foot. Roman bit his lip, as Logan’s eyes looked over them all. “Yes?” the teacher asked coolly.

“Give us your money or-”

“Okay then, so look,” Roman interrupted. “I’ve had a very difficult day. My almost boyfriend got Called. Another one of my friends might have also gotten Called, or maybe it’s the other way around...you know what, I don't care. My point is, I’m exhausted. And honestly,” the prince traced his Emblem, and summoned his shield. He whipped out his sword and aimed at the nearest bandit. “I could probably take you all on right now.”

Whispers ran through the band rapidly as even their leader faltered for a moment. They quickly regained their confidence, //returning to position. “You are no match for us. So what? All you have is a big shield and a sword? And what’s the glasses man going to do, throw books at us?”

“Well now that you mention it-” Logan began.

“We have strength in numbers. We can easily take you down. Besides, you look like you wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

Roman huffed dramatically, crossing his arms across his chest. He glared at each and every single one of the twelve bandits in front of him, sending shivers up their spines. Logan reached into his bag and pulled out a book. Not for throwing at the bandits, of course, but for reading. Roman was about to go into monologue mode in three, two-

“You think that I wouldn’t hurt a fly? I would hurt a fly if it meant that justice could be served! Justice and honor are above all things, and the law must be obeyed! I mean, there could be some certain exceptions, but you can’t simply just walk up to a prince and his tutor, say ‘Give us all your money’ or whatever, and leave. Like, have some common sense, people! I’ve been trained to fight if needed, for like, my entire life. And I  _ know  _ Logan packed a ton of hardcovers in there because  _ he _ insisted that I hold his bag since he had to hold mine when we were packing. He could probably keep throwing books at you like a baker throwing hot buns into the oven on a busy day: fast. I’ve been on the receiving end on one of his throws and they are  _ brutal _ . Like, I walk into class one day after a night of working on a play I want to put on in the local theater, and I’m late. Logan is mad and he’s like, “Do you have your homework?” and I’m like, “No.” Then he said, “Well, do you have your books?” and I’m like, “No, I was late and ran over here as fast as I could.” Then he balls up the piece of parchment he has in his hand and he throws it right at me! I ducked and it went out the window and into the courtyard, but still! He didn’t mean it, of course, but like, Logan! Chill out!”

The band of robbers stood awkwardly as Roman continued to rant, explaining how he had to read all about the justice system in Magnus and how it was so gosh darn big and confusing. (“Why can’t we just have something simple? Like a group of people to govern different areas of the kingdom who all work together on bigger decisions? Or like, anything else other than this monarchy? It’s really stressful!”) He talked about Logan again (“The only way I can get him to wake up, on the rare occasion I wake up before him, is by filling his room with jelly cookies or moving one book out of place. Personally, I go for the ‘move a book’ tactic, since I usually finish eating the cookies I bring up to him by the time I reach his room. By then, we are  _ really _ behind our lessons and he’s a grumpy-pants.”), and he talked about his almost boyfriend (“He is just  _ so cute _ and he’s happy and nice and he’s so sweet! Ha! I made a pun without even realizing it! ‘He’s so sweet?’ Get it, ‘cause he’s a baker? Aww, I hope he’d be proud of me!”).

It was incredibly likely that this could’ve gone on for much longer, but the bandits were on the road, covering their ears and saying, “We get it! You had a bad day! Please go away! We won’t bother you again!”

“Oh really?” Roman asked. “But hadn’t even started talking about my brother yet!”

““We’re sorry!” one cried out.

“Please, just stop talking so much!” another begged.

Logan looked up from his book. “We simply have one question. We would like you to answer this honestly.”

“Yes, of course!”

“Have you seen two men walking together? One tall with curly blonde hair and blue eyes. Emblem on the right wrist of concentric pale blue hearts. The other is short with copperish hair and green eyes. Emblem on the left wrist of two pink hearts intertwined.”

“We haven’t seen them!”

Logan examined them over his glasses, before saying, “You may go.” The bandits quickly ran off past them, and they were alone again. “Shouldn’t we have arrested them?”

“Pfftt. They were obviously newbies. Their bags looked empty and their disguises were horrible. Besides, all criminals and heroes need to know how to withstand a heroic or villainous monologue.”

“And where did you learn this from?”

“An excessive amount of reading romantic novels and watching plays at the theater. When I finish all my work for the day,” he quickly added at Logan’s eyebrow raise.

They began to ride on, and Logan continued, “Well, that was very clever of you. I was doubtful when you first pulled out your sword. But talking to them was an interesting tactic.”

The prince reached over and gave Logan a pat on the back. “Thanks, I learned from the best!”

“Haha, very funny,” the teacher said with a small smile on his face. “Just remember that you can’t draw your weapons on everyone to resolve your issues, and not everyone can be talked to boredom.”

“I know, Lo, I know.”

Not five more minutes passed before Roman asked, “So are we there yet?”

“No.”

“But it’s been forever! When is the action going to happen?”

“You honestly didn’t think this was a fantastical quest, did you? Because our friends are in danger.”

“I know that! But it can’t be this easy to search for them, can it? Where’s the action, th-the conflict that starts this all off?”

“Well, that would’ve been you finding out that Patton and Emile were Called. We could even date the conflict back to when we heard that Remy had been Called.”

“I guess so. All I want is something to happen. It’s going to be, well, embarrassing if I find Patton and there was nothing cool that happened on the way. Like, ‘Oh hey, Pat! We found you! All we had to do was ask a person at a tavern and then we found you with no obstacles in the way!’ Isn’t there something that can happen?”

It was at that moment that it started raining. The previously cloudless sky was filled with dark, rumbling clouds, and the dirt path was thick with mud. The two drove their horses to stay under the apple trees and covered them as best as they could.

Roman frowned as he tried to dry his hair. “Where is all of this rain coming from? It’s the middle of summer and not a week has gone by without some rain on these otherwise perfectly lovely days.”

“It’s certainly unusual,” Logan admitted, staring at the sky. “The natural climate is usually nothing like this. This has only occurred this summer.”

There was a long pause as the two of them looked up at the rain before Roman quietly asked, “Do you think the Snake has something to do with this?”

Logan thought quietly for a moment, then preparing himself answered, “No. I do not. While there may be some connection with how many people are being Called this summer to this unnatural rainfall, we’ve already established that the Snake does not control the weather. In fact, I don’t believe I’ve ever even heard of someone with the power to affect the weather. There’s probably some scientific explanation for this. The Snake having weather based powers  _ and _ powers to summon others is improbable.”

“It’s possible.”

“Improbable”

“We could have some grand battle against the Snake in order to save Patton.”

“And Emile and Remy.”

“And Emile and Remy, too.”

Despite how heavy and dark the clouds were, it only took about half an hour for it to clear up. Roman and Logan stepped out from under the trees, carefully lifting up their hoods to look up at the sky.

-

Many songs (from Roman) and academic readings (from Logan) later, the sun had begun to sink below the horizon. They had long since passed the farms on the outskirts of Castellum and were now in what appeared to be the middle of nowhere. The 

“Logan, level with me for a moment.”

“I’m not quite sure how I can do that, considering how much shorter I am than you and how we are currently on uneven ground, but I can try.”

Roman stopped, closing his eyes. He clasped his hands together then pointed them at Logan. “Are we lost? Because it looks like we’re lost.”

The tutor stopped ahead of Roman. He scoffed, slightly offended, “You know that it is highly unlikely that I have led us in the wrong direction. When people have been Called, the majority of them have started by traveling south. The Keeper’s Tavern is also south. We are moving,” he paused to check the compass he kept around his neck, “South.”

“You had to check!?”

“Always double, then triple-check your work before submitting it to the teacher, Roman.”

“So I’m the teacher now?”

“Not the point. While I am open to your opinions on which direction we are moving, as you should’ve remembered from your lessons when you were a child, I know that we’re going south.”

“Look!” Roman pointed past Logan to a point not so far off in the distance. The silhouette of a small cluster of buildings lay on the horizon. Lamp posts were being lit with candles and the windows were brightly illuminated from within.

“That’s certainly the tavern.” Logan made a sundial with his hand. “We arrived just in time too.”

The prince turned to his friend. “‘Right on time?’ Right on time for what?”

“Hurry along now, Roman.” He smiled back at the prince. “You don’t want to miss the show.”


	8. The Keeper’s Tavern

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2534
> 
> TW: Alcohol (beer), astrology mention

The wooden sign creaked in the light breeze, reading in simple script  _ The Keeper’s Tavern _ . Lamp posts stood in the front, shaped like different keys. The tavern was constructed entirely from well worn stone. It stood against the elements for many, many years. A metal-roofed stable stood far back from the road, and loud music rang out from inside the building. The travellers led their horses to the back, where they paid a stable-hand who reassured them that their horses would come to them well rested and fed.

The two took their bags with them and walked back to the front, passing rose bushes in a wide variety of colors. They approached the door and with a hand on the iron handle, Roman tried to push it open. He knocked several times on the tavern door, trying to make it budge. “Someone is blocking the door. This could be a dangerous situation.”

“Roman, there are laughing people inside. It can hardly be dangerous.”

“Stand back.” The prince took off his riding gloves and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. In an unsuccessful attempt to ram down the door, he fell to the ground. He grunted as he rose to his feet again, “Hold on, I’ve got it.”

“Roman,” Logan interrupted lightly. “Allow me.” He calmly walked up to the door, and instead of trying to push it open, he pulled the door handle. Light and laughter flooded outside.

“Oh. Um, thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

Boisterous laughter filled the tavern. Drinks were spilled upon the floor and music played loudly. Voices of people and music fought over each other to be heard, and the surprising result was the sound of pure ecstasy.

“Is that a band up there?” Roman shrieked excitedly. “Is this the show?”

“Hardly,” Logan replied smiling. “There’s much more to come. Guests are allowed to perform as they’d like up there. Unfortunately, you can not go up there, but you can certainly watch other’s performances.”

“But, why not? I want to perform up there! I never get the chance to do it in Castellum!”

“As lovely it would be to hear you sing after approximately 6 hours of you doing so, you don’t who can be trusted. You must remain undercover.”

The prince took another look around the tavern. “Looks fine to me.”

“You have to be careful, Roman. Your safety is my top priority.”

Roman thought of several comebacks, but thought otherwise of saying them. Instead, he asked skeptically, “We’re staying here for the night? Don’t get me wrong, this place looks absolutely amazing, but you don’t seem like the person who would be into this scene.”

Logan quickly guided Roman to an empty table, where he asked for drinks. His eyes scanned the crowd, appearing to be looking for someone. “As much as I appreciate your sentiment for finding Patton, we cannot do this without a proper guide. Surely, there must be someone here who has seen Patton or Remy. The Keeper’s Tavern is a hub of wandering travelers from all of the kingdoms.”

“Do you know anybody?” Roman asked, taking a sip from the foaming tankard of beer that was set next to him. “Like, anybody at all?”

“Not quite, but I’m sure we’ll find someone.”

Roman took another long sip, trying to take in everything around him. He looked longingly up at the stage. When his father was well and both Roman and Remus behaved (which was a very rare instance), they would go into the town and watch performances at the theater. Roman instantly fell in love with the idea of being on a stage and performing in front of hundreds of people. But there was also a spark in him, something that burned with injustice at the lack of people on the stage that looked like him. The actors and performers were fair skinned, and those of a darker tone were often not seen upon the stage at all. In the instances that they appeared on stage, Roman found that they only played minor roles, or were cast as villains of the narrative, while every other person was white. At first, the child was perplexed, then disheartened, then furious.

He knew what he had to do.

He instantly returned to the castle, hiding away in the library for hours at a time, devouring playscripts and romance novels, trying to write his own. He would, of course, do some basic learning and education, as Remus was assigned all of the heavy work (which he never did), but Roman would spend all of his time performing in front of small imaginary audiences in his room, and learned to sing. Remus groaned and howled every night, as Roman belted songs just next door, but Roman quiet honestly couldn’t care less. It was what he loved to do.

Of course, the time came when his father passed and Remus was Called, which left Roman with no time during the day for his old hobbies. But, oh! Every so often, when Roman simply couldn’t fall asleep, he would rise from his bed, open the windows, and serenade the night, singing songs of love, loss, and adventure. He would dance barefoot in his room across the warm soft rugs, and cold stone floors. He would write more songs and more playscripts, and stuff them deep under his bed, away from the rest of the world. And finally, as the morning sun rose, he would sigh contently and fall sound asleep, only to be woken up by a slightly irritated, but also understanding Logan.

As he was watching a group of people writing furiously with their left hands, a voice whispered into his ear, “‘I’d like to steal your head..”

The prince nearly spat out his drink as he spun around, “Who the f-”

“Full of beautiful gorgeous hair, ‘cause you are rocking it! Haha! Fabulous!” The person was tall and thin, resting an arm on the back of Roman’s chair. Faer long hair was a brilliant bright pink which contrasted immensely with faer green outfit. An ale stained apron was tied around faer waist, as fae grinned at the two.

Logan smiled. “Ah, Missy. A pleasure to see you again.”

“And a ‘how do you do’ to you too, Mr. Magiste. I must say, that cloak looks wonderful!”

“Thank you, Missy.”

“Oh, you’ve grown so much since the last time I saw you! And you!” Missy spun around the table, and was now leaning faer arm on the back of Logan’s chair, leaving Roman helplessly confused. “Who might we have here? Like, I said earlier, your hair is simply fabulous, dear. I can’t help but feel as if we met somewhere before. Hmmm…” Fae stood upright, tapping faer chin with a long, graceful finger. “Ah! I know! Are you Remus Knight?”

Roman sputtered, “What? No of course not! I’m Roman, his brother! The alive one! The handsomer one! The one who is supposed to be king in a few days! And now, can someone please explain to me who this is?!”

“Ohhh. Sorry. I’m not that good with people who look the same. I’m Mx. Missy Mardew! I’ve owned this tavern for my entire life, and somehow, I’ve yet to meet royalty.”

“But I thought you said-”

“I’ve picked up descriptions of people over the years. Now then, what brings you two to the Keeper’s Tavern? I see you two have gotten drinks already, so what’ll it be?”

“We’re looking for a few friends of ours,” Logan explained. “Remy Hypnos, Emile Picani, and Patton Hartt. Have you seen them?”

“Patton? The boy who came with you all those years ago?” Logan nodded, as Missy thought, serious. “Well, I haven’t seen Patt around in years. If he had come by, I would’ve at least talked to him. He’s such a sweet guy! No one could ever forget him!

“As for Rems and Ems, I haven’t met ‘em. But I have heard of them! Remy with the dark hair and darkened specs on his eyes. Emblem on the right with an open and a closed eye. Emile had the coppery short hair, some specs of his own, and the Emblem of two hearts intertwined. Haven’t seen em.”

Roman and Logan sighed. The prince put his head on the table, groaning, “So much for your superb lead, teach.”

“Don't worry, Roman. We'll find a lead. Thank you for your help, Missy,” Logan said. “Can we get a room for the night?”

“Sure thing! I’ll set you up right away!”

“Ladies, gents, and all those n-btween!” A voice rang out clearly above the din, not faltering as it only grew louder. The group of travelers had not faltered at all and were still performinvolumeg their number up on stage, as the man spoke loudly above the noise. “I propose a toast to the prince Roman Knight of Magnus, for his coronation in ten days!” The man raised a glass, at this point shouting, “A glass to the future king of a great land, the kingdom of Magnus!”

Several people cheered, and raised their glasses to the sky. Roman and Logan stared at the man, who stepped down from the table he was standing on. The man walked over to a small group of people, as he strummed a lute that he had kept on his back. He stood tall, and confident. His clothing was brightly colored, almost theatrical.

“A minstrel,” Logan muttered, taking a long sip of his drink.

“I’ll get that room for you!” Missy said. “Tata, lovelies!”

Roman continued staring, after Missy left. Without thinking for another moment, he stood up and walked over to the man, leaving Logan hissing warnings from his seat at the table. “Um, hi.”

“Oh, hello! Do you need anything?”

“Are you a traveler?”

“I mean, most of us here are,“ the man chuckled. “But, yes, I’ve been all over. Any reason?”

Roman cleared his throat. “I’m looking for a friend of mine. He left without telling anyone, and he’s kind of missing?”

“Oh stars, I’m so sorry to hear that!” The man began running his hands through his hair, frowning with concern. “Can you tell me what he looks like? Maybe we’ve seen him!” The man gestured to the people at his table, a group of individuals, now all concerned for Roman.

The prince thought for a moment, recalling Patton’s smiling face. “Well, he’s really handsome for one. He’s got a round-ish face, and these big beautiful sky blue eyes. Oh, and he smiles. A lot. That’s probably one of his most defining traits. He’s pretty tall, a bit shorter than me though. He’s got these golden curls that frame his face perfectly, and when he smiles, warmth just fills you from the inside out. And his Emblem is this set of concentric pale blue hearts on his right wrist.”

“He’s a leftie?” The man asked suddenly, rapt with attention. “He’s one of us?”

“‘One of us?’” Roman asked. “I mean, yeah he’s a leftie, but what does that have to do with-”

“A left handed person! We must find him and have him join our ranks!” the man roared. Out of seemingly nowhere, he held a quill in his hand, raising it to the skies. “The Order of the Left-Handed Folk, rise! For we must find this man, no matter the cost!”

“Huzzah!” the lot cheered.

Roman was still confused. The man noticed this, and smiled apologetically, holding out a hand. “Haha, sorry. Lefties are just so hard to find. I’m Thomas, by the way. Thomas Sanders.”

“Roman,” the prince said, taking the hand. “Roman Knight.”

“Holy shmokes! You’re the prince?” Thomas asked quietly, running his hands through his hair, for what appeared to be the tenth time in their minute of interaction. “Goodness gracious! I just talked about you! I made a toast and everything! Um, should I bow, or are you,” he paused, looking to both sides before leaning in and asking quietly, “Incognito?”

“Very incognito,” Roman replied, matching Thomas in flair.

They stared into each other's eyes before cracking up with laughter. “Are you a fan of theatre? You’ve got the theatre vibe to you.”

“I’d go to performances all the time in Castellum when I had the ability to.”

“Wow…” Thomas thought for a moment before speaking. “It sounds like you care a lot for this guy. I think I may have seen him. Do you want us to come with you?” he offered, gesturing again at his band of lefties. “We can help.”

Roman smiled. “It would be an honor to have The Order of the Left-Handed Folk with us.” At Thomas’ puzzled look, Roman added, “Oh, and I have a friend with me. That is Logan Magiste.” He pointed at Logan, who sat quietly observing from the table, shaking his head. “Here, let me call him over.”

Roman waved frantically at Logan, who stood up, and crossed the room with purpose. “Good evening. I’m Logan Magiste.”

“Oh! I recognize you! I’m Thomas Sanders. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Doctor.”

“I’m not a doctor anymore,” Logan replied stiffly. “I gave that up a long time ago.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry! Um, your medical work is really cool, but I kind of just know you from your book. I read it a few years ago, and it really stood out to me!”

“It’s fine,” the teacher added hurriedly, “You didn’t know. And you read my book? The one on-”

“ _ The Stars, The Sky, and The Science of Our Planet? _ ” they said simultaneously.

“It was really good! I personally like chemistry, but astrology is really cool too!”

“I’m very pleased to hear you enjoyed it. I’m just surprised that someone actually read my book!” Logan laughed. Just as quickly as he smiled, he frowned. “Have you seen our friend, Patton Hartt? He/him. Approximately 5 foot 8 inches. Golden hair, with light curls. Sky blue eyes. Typically wearing baggier clothing. Emblem: Three concentric pale blue hearts?”

“I believe that I have!” Thomas answered. “Roman and I were just discussing how me and my group could join you and help find him! We heard he was a leftie!” he added quickly.

Logan thought for a moment, as Roman quietly whispered in his ear, “They can help. They seem really nice too!”

At last, Logan held out his hand. In a low voice, he said, “On behalf of the Prince of Magnus, I’d like to accept your request and welcome you to our band. We will be searching for Misters Patton Hart, Emile Picani, and Remy Hypnos. I will be expecting you to be awake and prepared for travel at dawn.” As Thomas Sanders took his hand, Logan added quietly, “Thank you.”

“We won’t let you down! We’ll be ready for you at dawn.”

“Thomas, where will we be going?” Roman asked, before going upstairs for his things.

“It’s going to be a difficult journey,” he said, “He was heading south, as we were heading north. I came from Hulope, to the southwest from here. The only thing completely south from here that I know of is a dangerous place. I might be wrong, but I think we have to go to the Midnight Forest.”


	9. The Midnight Forest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 1104
> 
> TW: Claustrophobia (small spaces w/ large group of people), mentions of many eyed, many toothed monsters, nyctophobia (fear of the dark), scopophobia (eye contact)

Thomas and his crew had all of their things packed before going to bed. So the following morning, the merry band rode on by the break of daylight. Thomas sang songs to which Roman joined in with great pleasure. It was for three days that they rode in this manner, stopping every so often to rest, eat, and drink. With three days having passed, Roman only had nine moons to find Patton, Emile, and Remy; defeat the Snake; return to Castellum; and be crowned king. It is for this reason that Logan took the lead to the Midnight Forest, riding quickly and briskly with Thomas’ occasional guidance. 

The Midnight Forest was named so for it’s charcoal black trees. As one walks through them, it feels as if they are walking into shadows and night. The sky above is barely visible, and in the broadness of daylight, a lantern or two is often needed to make one’s way through. Then of course, lay the question, ‘What is through?’, for no one had made their way completely through the forest; when one walked in one way and continued in a straight line, if they survived after several weeks, they ended up where they first began. Not to mention, there were many creatures of myth living within those woods. They were all stranger than the strangeness of this world with tendrils of shadows; eyes that saw past, present and future; haunting calls and unholy screeches; and many, many teeth.

At last the band arrived at the edge of the forest. The sky was no different above the black wood; it was still as grey and solemn as it was before. Roman half expected the Snake to jump out, and declare, “Haha! I’ve been expecting you, Prince Roman!” But they did not appear. The band tied up their horses and built a makeshift shelter for them, murmuring words of comfort as they left them. They entered without any obstacles. 

They all shivered, sensing the gloom that settled upon them all as they walked through. Their collective apprehension built steadily, as twigs cracked, footsteps retreated away from the group, and shadows laughed as they too retreated. At last, the trees grew so close together, that they began to walk in a single file line. “We walk straight,” Logan said, “And we do not lose sight of one another.” Their lanterns were held up high as they continued on and on.

“It’s really dark here,” Roman said quietly. “I mean, I know it’s called the Midnight Forest, but this is  _ dark _ .”

“Fact: The Midnight Forest was not always the Midnight Forest. At one point, it was simply a forest referred to as the Forest of Ilarya.”

“Huh, I never knew that,” Thomas called out from the middle of the line. “Y’know, I’ve heard songs about a place called Ilarya, but I never imagined that this was it. What happened to it?”

“Most believe that it was the Snake who turned it dark, but quite frankly, I don’t believe that. It was most likely an environmental change, due to changing climate-”

“We’re here,” Roman said quietly.

They reached an area where they could see the grey sky above them clearly. They stood in a circular clearing, in front of a tall wall of thorns and brambles.

“This has to be it, right?” Roman asked. “There’s a giant wall in front of us. It has to be hiding something!”

Thomas stepped forward, drawing a sword. He eyed the wall, top to bottom, and swung.

Then he was flung backwards by a golden light. “Goodness gracious!” He ran his fingers through his hair, shaking off his pain.

Logan rushed over. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine! Looks like there’s some sort of protection spell here!”

“But how do the Called get in?” Logan asked. “Perhaps it only allows certain people in? Those with the intention of entering? But we have such intentions...Maybe we need some sort of relic, or a guide?”

“Or you could’ve politely asked for permission.”

Roman summoned his shield, turning to face a hooded stranger. They stood alone in the clearing, behind the group of travellers. In a voice, loud and clear, Roman stood his ground and said, “I am Roman Knight of Magus, son of Creon and brother to Remus. My friends and I come in peace, and-”

“We know who you are.”

“‘We?’ I’m sorry, but I can only see one of you.”

The hooded stranger snarled, stepping forward threateningly, “Who are you and what are you doing here?”

“Well, I just told you who I am, and you didn’t let me tell you what I meant to say, so really that’s just your fault, you...you… you creepy cookie!”

The stranger pulled down his hood, revealing a head of blonde and dark purple hair and stormy, sunken silver eyes. He quirked an eyebrow at the prince, smirking. “I’m sorry. A  _ what _ ?” 

“I’m tired, okay?!” Roman protested. “My friends and I spent a long time going through this dark, spooky forest, and I’m really  _ really _ hungry right now! I just want to see my boyfriend!”

“He’s technically not your boyfriend,” Logan added, as he joined Roman’s side.

“Okay, so he’s  _ not _ my boyfriend. I just really hope that he wants to be my boyfriend too! Just duel me, and grant us access into whatever is beyond that wall! You’re just one person. You can’t take on all of us!”

“One person?” said a voice all around them. “I don't believe that you don’t know who we are. At least, you’d recognize me, dear brother?”

Roman’s knees buckled, but he tried to keep his sword up, looking the purple stranger in the eye. “What kind of trick are you playing? Stop it. Duel me like a true warrior.”

“Ugh, you’re so boring, Roman,” the voice said, sending chills down his spine. “Honestly, do you think that little shrimp can really fight you? Do you  _ really _ think that he’d be the one for pranks?”

The hooded man scoffed. “Rude.”

A figure clad in black leapt forward from the trees and landed in front of the prince. Roman took a step back, narrowly avoiding the comically large mace that could have landed on his foot. His brother smiled maniacally, as he leaned in closer to Roman’s face, so that they were nearly nose-to-nose. His hair and skin were darker than before, perhaps from walking in the sun for so long, save for slivers of silver throughout. His eyes had always been this way, but Roman was unnerved by the ruby red eyes of his brother’s that stared straight at him.

“Boo.”


	10. The Stormy Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 1815
> 
> TW: Fantasy Violence, Lightning/Thunderstorms, swearing, siblings fighting (Roman and Remus), yelling, blood, head injuries, death mention

They all sprang into battle. More figures leapt from the shadows to fight the intruders. Thomas and his band raised their weapons and cried, “For the lefties!” as they ran into the fray.

“You grew a mustache?!” Roman yelled, as he deftly raised his sword to counter Remus’ attack. “You have got to be kidding me!”

“I think it adds a little pizazz!” Remus snarled, whirling his mace around again.

“It does not!”

“It does!”

They bickered on and on as their weapons clashed, metal on metal. Sparks flew. Equal level. Equal strength. Red against green. White against black. Two contrasting forces blending together as they danced around the clearing, wielding their weapons.

Remus began to spin like a top, his mace dangerously close to Roman each time. “Just. Let. Me. Get. You!”

“I was always the better one at fighting!”

“Pfft. You’re better at dodging and avoiding your problems!”

That struck a chord in Roman’s heart. He paused for just a moment, and it was a moment too long. Remus held his mace over his head, and slammed it down on Roman. With this blow the Red Prince fell to the ground, groaning. He stayed there, smelling the earth, now damp from... rain? It would be nice to lay like this. Watching the grass grow. Watching as droplets of water fell on the blades. Watching as he sank down into the earth.

His brother squatted down next to him, cocking his head to one side before poking Roman’s cheek with his finger. “Are you dead? It was a fake mace, dumbass.”

“Thas not a weal mace?”

“Nope! The Snake said I’d go overboard with a big mace, and that apparently I have twig arms that can’t carry one, even though I have my sword.” He continued to look at Roman, now poking his other cheek. He crossed his arms and sighed. “You’re always so overdramatic. You’re fine. Unless you feel like bleh?”

“Nuuoo…”

“That’s good. Get up. Let’s keep going.”

“Fuve moor minutes.”

“What happened to the little kid who always chased me around with his shield shouting, ‘GLORY TO SUNSHINE RAINBOW LAND!’ Get up.”

Roman rolled over and used the momentum to force himself into a sitting position. He rose, glaring at his brother. “Stop acting like we were years apart, we were literally mere minutes apart.  _ And _ , you were the one who chased me with your sword all the time. Why don’t we just settle this? Once and for all!”

On the other side of the clearing, Logan was darting around, helping heal wounds as quickly as he could. His hands shook as he applied salves and wrapped bandages. “Stars I haven’t done this in forever,” he muttered under his breath, too quietly for his patient to hear. He was just about them with them when a burst of lightning struck down behind him. The doctor covered the patient’s body instinctively, and looked behind him, his eyes wide.

Electricity hummed and flickered. The purple figure’s long hair frizzed with static. “Shit,” he muttered, as he tried to smoothen his hair and tie it back. Logan’s eyes caught sight of the man’s Emblem: a multicolored cloud with three bursts of lightning, which glowed with power and just so happened to match the pendant around the man’s neck. He moved with grace and power across the field, trying to knock down as many people as he could, using a variety of unconventional weapons: lightning, heavy rain, wind.

“Storms,” Logan whispered. Curiosity welled up inside of him, unlike it had in years. “I need to get closer,” he said to no one, as he stumbled along the sidelines.

Virgil was busy. He couldn’t keep up with this. Sweat and rain soaked him to his bones, as he threw lightning faster and faster. Never before had he thought about the possibility of people finding their base; he had cast many protection spells around the area to keep intruders from accidentally stumbling upon the place. But, never did he think people other than the Called would want to intentionally go there. Despite this, he was prepared. He had been privately training for this day, and now he was ready to defend this forest he had lived in for his entire life. Virgil spied a man swathed in blue along the edge of the clearing, clearly trying to get closer. He sent a bolt his way, but the man ducked and Virgil merely set fire to a tree. “Shit!!” The man saw Virgil’s frustration and frantically waved his hands, not fazed by the fire behind him.

“Water!”

He understood, and sent a cloud over before more trees could catch fire. The man quickly stumbled towards Virgil. “Hello,” he said simply. “I’m Logan Magiste.”

“Y-you just walked up to me in the middle of a battle to tell me your name?” Virgil asked incredulously. “Like, we’re on opposing sides.”

Logan coughed, and hastily wiped his rain covered glasses on his soaked doublet. Then, realizing what he was doing, he coughed even more and said, “Perhaps, we could speak at another time.”

“Yeah. How about after we all stop fighting each other and you all leave this forest?”

The teacher bristled. “We’re not leaving until we get our friends back. However, I agree; we should stop fighting. But that’s simply because we do not  _ need _ to. Wouldn’t you rather just talk this out diplomatically? We did intrude, and I apologize if we made you all feel unsafe in some way. Roman and Remus are brothers, and siblings tend to fight, as far as I’ve gathered from taking care of them.”

“Stars, how old are you? Your hair is so white! Sorry. That was rude.”

Logan’s laugh rang through the battlefield, but few noticed. “I’m not that old, I promise. Only a year or two older than the twins.”

“That’s like leaving a horse to be in charge of a dog.”

“Well, I don’t quite know why one would do that. Roman, Remus, and I are all homosapiens, and dogs and horses are nowhere nearly as closely related, but uh, may I?” Logan asked, offering a hand.

Virgil hesitated, then took it. Crouching, they moved to a cluster of rocks near the edge of the clearing as the battle continued. Logan sat and patted at the damp ground, and Virgil joined him.

“Seeing as I’ve introduced myself and we are in the middle of an ongoing battle, why don’t you introduce yourself to me?”

“I’m Virgil.”

“Last name?”

“Everyone calls me ‘Woods.’”

“I see.”

They sat awkwardly, as the battle continued behind them.

“Are you much of a fighter? You seem very skilled in your craft.”

“I usually don’t fight. None of us do really. But I know how to use my Emblem well.”

“Interesting.” Logan reached to his side for his bag, but then realizing he left it on the other side of the clearing, he groaned. Instead he folded his hands in his laps and played with his thumbs as he asked Virgil, “So none of you fight?”

“Very few of us have Emblems that are related to strength, speed, dexterity, and all of that fighting crap. Most of us are just normal people with simple powers.”

“I see. Well, I’d like to ask you a few more questions. It’s about some of the more recently Called.”

The witch’s shoulders tensed. He eyed Logan warily, as he slowly ran his fingers over his Emblem, hiding it’s soft glow under his hood. “Yeah?”

“We are only here to look for a few friends of ours. Perhaps you know of them. Patton Hart, and Remy and Emile Picani.”

“Yeah, I know them.”

“Excellent. We can put a stop to the fighting, clear up this misunderstanding, and carry on with what we intend to do.”

“You’re crazy! You can’t just walk onto a battlefield and tell everyone to stop.”

“Well, I can’t, but you might.” Virgil’s eyes widened as Logan continued. “You look like a person who could lead. You speak your mind, and you know your people. They listen to you.”

Virgil looked down at the ground, scrunching up into a tight ball, watching a little stormcloud hover around his foot. “I’m not going to go out there. They’re not going to listen to me. There’s only here because the Snake told them to follow me and Remus out here. Besides, I’m not going to put myself out there because I might get killed just for standing up. They’d probably listen to you more anyways. It’s dangerous, but you look smart.”

“Given my history, I doubt that people will ever listen to me again.” Virgil looked up at Logan, who was looking up at the gray sky. “If neither of us have the confidence to do this independently, I suggest that we do this together.” Logan offered a hand, and after retracing his Emblem, Virgil took his hand. Together they rose, and they stood atop the rocks, holding each other's hands as they looked across the battlefield. Logan nodded at Virgil, and with a deep inhale, the latter yelled, “Stop!”

And the battle continued.

“Enough!” Logan bellowed.

And the battle continued.

An arrow whizzed towards Logan, and Virgil quickly pulled him down. “You could’ve died! Are you okay?”

“Thank you, and I’m fine.” Logan smoothed his cloak. “I suppose that could’ve gone better.”

“Yeah. It could’ve.” There was no bitterness or sarcasm in Virgil’s voice, surprising himself. He noted to himself the lack of thoughts running through his mind, no excessive worries of how things could’ve gone differently and what could’ve been done. Only the present concern for this man he just met.  _ That’s weird. _ He chose not to dwell on this. He pulled his hood over his head and peered over the rock, looking across the clearing to the Red and Green Princes, whose weapons were clashing loudly.

The twins gave a great swing at each other, and their weapons were cast aside. “That’s it!” They howled, as the twins drew upon their Emblems. Roman raised the Shield high above the sky, just as Remus did the same with the Sword. “For Creon!” they simultaneously yelled.

There was a flashing myriad of colors, a bang as the twins were knocked to their backs, a great whoosh, and then it all stopped. Everyone on the field turned to the brothers, who propped themselves up on their elbows.

Wincing in pain, Roman looked to where he felt a searing pain. The shield he had summoned disappeared, and now his Emblem was bleeding. He looked to his brother, who was prodding at his Emblem, which also appeared to be bleeding. The twins looked at each other. “What was that?” Roman asked quietly.

“I have no idea,” Remus answered simply. He stood carefully, and extended a hand to Roman. “No tricks. I think we need to see the Snake. They’ll tell us what happened.”


	11. The Relic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2759
> 
> TW: Sword, Blood mention, War discussion, death discussion, brief murder discussion, Fire mention

Remus guided everyone to the camp. Logan stayed near the back, tending to wounds as they slowly pushed through the wall of brambles, and Virgil stayed in the middle, trusting Remus enough not to lead them all into a ditch. Roman wasn’t sure of where  _ he _ was supposed to be walking, and so he stayed behind his brother, who had drawn his sword out again and was cutting down brambles.

“So,” Remus began loudly. “How’s Magnus? Everyone still alive, not killed in some big plague my little brother caused or something?”

“First of all, you’re barely any older than me, and I’m the handsome one.”

“Pfft. Yeah, sure. You can say that  _ I’m _ the little brother, but I’m still better looking than you and your big nose.”

“You two have the same face,” Logan called out from the back.

Roman got as close to Remus as he could without being whacked by his sword, which was difficult considering how violently Remus was swinging it. “I do not have a big nose!  _ You _ have the bigger nose. I’m the handsome one.”

“Stars, are you two listening to me? You. Have. The. Same. Face!”

“But anyways, Magnus is fine.”

Remus raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, so it’s not that great. Crops aren’t doing well. The people are poor. A lot of the surrounding countries are getting antsy that there isn’t a ‘real king’ yet. Dice is still regent, and we’re barely surviving.”

“Really? They haven't gotten rid of the old butthole yet?”

“Yeah, we’re waiting until I finish my training and turn 20. Logan insisted that I have at least two years worth of training and studying. He wanted to give me more, but Dice can’t really stay on the throne for much longer. Honestly, I don't know what he’s going to do after this. He always enjoyed being judgy.”

“But that’s different from being a king. When you’re the king, you’ve got a lot of stuff to think about, like people, and defenses and who you’re going to have to get rid of to make sure it all runs well. It’s a lot more than just being a judge.”

“Sounds like the Snake put a little bit of reason in you these past two years huh?”

“Nah, I gathered it all from Logan, and from talking with Virgil. He knows every way that things can turn out.”

“Is that his Emblem?”

“No, he’s just like that. It’s kind of sad. It helps sometimes, but other times...”

“Oh.”

Silence.

One must understand it was difficult for the brothers; neither had seen or heard from them in over a year. One thought the other was dead, and one forgot the other’s existence. Besides, neither were the type for small talk. They never got along before Remus was Called; why should they start to get along now?

_ What was he thinking?  _ Roman asked himself.  _ He got Called and didn’t tell anyone he was still alive. We all thought he was dead. _

_ What was he thinking? _ Remus asked himself.  _ He just shows up out of nowhere and demands to fight the Snake. He can’t do that. This is my safe place. This is my home. _

_ Stupid brother, _ the two of them thought.

“So why did you yell ‘For Creon’ back there?” Roman asked. “Dad’s not around anymore, and you didn’t like him much.”

“I dunno. He was still Dad, but I just did what was right in the moment.”

“Would you kill me for dad?”

“Mmm. Maybe.”

“M-maybe?!” The Red Prince sputtered. “What the fuck Remus!”

“Depends on the circumstances,” he shrugged, continuing to swing his sword. “Why did  _ you _ yell that anyways? Would you kill me?”

“I just yelled it because it felt right. But I’d never kill you!”

“Strange how the mind works huh?”

“Yeah. Strange.”

At last, Remus cut through the final brambles and the group poured into the camp. They drew the attention of others, who turned before quickly fleeing into their tents. Thomas stepped up next to the twins, running his hands through his head, sporting a slight limp. “What’s up with everyone?”

“Usually not a ton of people come in at once.” Virgil walked forward from the middle of the line. “Plus, everyone doesn’t look too great.” That was true. Although no one sported any fatal wounds, many people from both sides of the battle had some injuries. Virgil pointed to a small wood cabin not too far from them. “Take anyone with any major injuries over there to be tended to. And the smaller tent with the little red flag next to it can deal with any small scrapes and stuff. Just tell them I sent you in.” Thomas nodded and took most of the group over the cabin and tent, while Virgil turned to the small group remaining. “Everyone else can follow me to the dining pavilion. You guys probably want some food. Red Knight guy, Logan and Remus can come with me. We’re going to talk to the Snake.”

Remus and Virgil led the whole group to the thorn and rose covered pavilion. Only a few groups of people were sitting at the tables, and one in particular caught Roman’s eye.

“Roman, Logan! You’re here!”

Patton, Emile, and Remy rushed over from their seats next to the Snake and joined their friends.

Roman smiled, arms outstretched, “Patton, I-”

“Roman Knight.” The Snake stood up from the table where Patton, Emile, and Remy were sitting. “How... unexpected.” Roman was taken aback. The ‘Snake’ didn’t look like a snake; they looked like a normal person, smiling and cordial. But there was something in their eyes, a keen and dangerous gleam that the prince simply couldn’t trust. They looked up and down before offering a hand to Roman, smiling. “What a pleasure it is to make your acquaintance.”

“Can’t say the same,” Roman returned, resting his hand on the hilt of his sword. “Why did you take these innocent people?”

The Snake continued to smile, cocking their head slightly to the side. “Why don’t we continue this conversation in my office.”

“Bet it’s a creepy snake cave.”

“I don’t quite understand where this behavior is coming from,” they replied coolly, “But no. A cave does not serve as my office. At one point it did, but now I work in a perfectly normal tent. Let’s resume our conversation there.”

The prince rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, huffing. “Fine. But only because it’s the  _ honorable _ thing to do.”

The Snake regarded him before turning away with a swoosh of his cape. “Come. All of you, please.”

Roman reluctantly followed the Snake, who walked quickly across the field to a tent, the rest of the group not too far behind. The “perfectly normal tent” was much larger than the rest, more similar to a small marquee. Although the group was large in numbers, they managed to fit comfortably within the cover of the marquee. Inside was a large wooden table, cleared of anything on it aside from a large map.

“Gather round, gather round,” the Snake said, standing at the head of the table. “Let’s begin a civil discussion on what needs to be done. Virgil, would you care to explain?”

He looked up from the ground, glancing at the other people around him before mumbling a few quick ‘sure’s and ‘yeah’s. He cleared his throat, focusing his gaze on the map. “There’s been a lack of communication among us. We know that some of you,” he caught Roman’s eye before quickly coughing his throat again, “Think that the Snake is the villain, and that they have been randomly calling people for some big, mysterious, evil plan. I mean, I probably would, if I were in your situation. Like, all the fires, no one ever returning, and no one ever seeing the Snake’s face, plus their name just  _ sounds _ suspicious-” he caught himself and straightened himself out. “Well, they’re not evil.”

“And why should we believe that?” Roman asked, fire in his eyes.

“Well babe, they haven’t hurt us.” Remy put an arm over Emile’s shoulder. “Ro, I’ve been here for nearly a week, and Patt and Emmy have been here less. But, we can tell you that the Snake has done nothing wrong to us. Really, they’ve been nothing but kind.”

Logan quickly interjected, “And I had a discussion with Virgil here, on the battlefield.”

“You two  _ talked _ to each other?  _ On an ongoing battlefield? _ ”

“Tsk. Yes, but the point of the matter is that Virgil explained to me who these people are. They won’t hurt us. It was merely because we came close to their land, and were armed.”

Emile thought quietly to himself before asking from across the table, “Roman, what would you do if there were unknown armed people coming towards Castellum?”

The prince perked up, and banged his fist upon the table. “I’d fight of course! I’d do anything to defend our land, so long as few innocent people are hurt!”

“Now, you see things from their point of view!” Emile looked at him gently. “You’ve gotta look at it from both sides. You’ve gotta ask yourself, ‘Why would someone want to do the thing they do?’”

“It’s elementary, dear prince,” Logan said. He clapped his hands and folded them in front of him. “Now that our prince has settled down, let us continue now shall we?” He turned to the Snake, gesturing at them to continue.

“Thank you.” They stood quickly with their thoughts. “Your arrival was certainly unexpected, Prince Roman. However, given that you are here now, perhaps we can work through a plan.”

“And what exactly does this plan entail?” Roman grumbled skeptically. “What do you even need a plan for?”

“Why Prince Roman!” The Snake gasped in mock surprise. “It stuns me to hear that you aren’t aware of the fact that the nation of Archen is on the brink of  _ war _ with Magnus. Your  _ father _ failed to pay an insurmountable amount of debt to the royal family, and they haven’t seen a cent of what they were promised for six years. It’s  _ all _ that people have been talking about. They feign joy at the news of your coronation! Some remain truly loyal to you, and only wish you’d get on the throne sooner! Either way, your people are angry! This war will inevitably end with your removal from the throne and the destruction of Magnus.”

“I-I knew that,” the Red Prince stuttered. “I...definitely knew that! My coronation is in a week though! All I need is to take Patton, Remy, and Emile back and get crowned as soon as possible. Then, I can work with Logan on how to stop this war. We can make positive changes!”

Virgil shook his head. “That won’t work. Your friends will be safer here. In fact, everyone will be safest here. The Snake and I have it covered.”

“The war is inevitable, but there is a way to end it as quickly as possible,” The Snake said carefully.

“How? How can we stop people from being hurt?” Patton asked eagerly. “What do we have to do?”

“Well you’ll need the Relic.”

““And what is this...Relic?” Logan asked, looking over his glasses skeptically.

The Snake shut their eyes, and held Remus’ hand, speaking carefully “It is an object created by King Creon, filled with magical power.”

Remus turned to the Snake. “You never told me about this. King Creon is-”

“Our father,” Roman finished quietly. The table fell silent, as the twins looked at each other inquisitively. “So where is this Relic? Where do we need to go to find it?” 

“You don’t need to go anywhere to find it. You two both have it. When you’ve both drawn your Emblems and procured your sword and shield, you will be able to create the Relic. You must share the same intention, not of harming each other, but of using both of your powers to defeat a common enemy. There is also a certain phrase you must say, something that drives both of you to fight. I do not know this phrase, but if the two of you work together you may find it.”

“But we already know it.” Remus gestured vaguely with his hands.“We said it out in the field and there was a big woosh and bang and bright glowing colors!”

“Try it again,” Logan said. “We need to see if this works.” The brothers traced their Emblems and lay their sword and shield next to each other on the wooden table. “Think of your common enemy, the Dragon Witch, and your desire to defeat her, as the Snake said.”

The twins looked each other in the eyes before whispering quietly, “For Creon.” At first nothing happened. There was no flash of color, no long bang that threw everyone back. But then, the Sword and Shield began to quiver, then pull together like magnets.

Everyone drew away from the table as the two objects spun in a circle, slowly increasing in speed before there was a flash of white light. Then it all stopped. On the table was the Relic: a small pewter balance scale. And everyone flew into protest.

“That’s it?” Roman asked incredulously. “ _ This _ is the weapon we’re supposed to use against the Dragon Witch?”

“It sure could use a glow-up, couldn’t it?” Patton joked, smiling at everyone around him nervously.

“What’s that going to do against a dragon?” Remus cried out. “Couldn’t Dad have at least given us a bigger sword, or a bigger shield, or something that is actually useful?”

Logan frowned, prodding at the table . “There must be some actual use for this, correct? Surely King Creon didn’t expect for the greatest weapon of all time to be a balance scale?”

As he repeatedly snapped his fingers under his cloak, Virgil muttered quietly to no one in particular, “I knew it. We’re screwed. We’re screwed, we’re screwed, we’re screwed-”

“Well babes, enjoy the end of the world. I’m going out for coffee!” Remy said, quickly turning away.

Emile looked between his friends and his husband, before quickly running out to catch up with Remy.

“Settle down everyone,” the Snake said coolly. “I’m not so sure of what this is supposed to do, but this is what is to be used against the Dragon Witch. We have eight more days until the Dragon Witch launches into action. We can spend a few days planning before we head there.”

“Hold up a minute,” the prince interrupted. “How do you know all of this?”

The Snake began to speak, but as the words they wanted to say crawled up, they were shoved back down, quite unwillingly. And so, the only thing that could be said was, “I have my sources.” Seeing this, Remus held their hand reassuringly. The Snake took a deep breath before slowly and carefully choosing their words. “I have met the Dragon Witch before.”

“And?” Patton asked quietly from next to Roman.

“And I saw her plan in a dream.”

“A dream?” Logan asked. “That seems highly unreasonable. No one can truly say what substance our dreams are made of. They certainly aren't’ prophetic visions. They are influenced by outside events.”

“That is correct,” the Snake said, shaking their head. Everyone turned to look at them, as they moved their hands to grip the table. They began to speak more slowly. “I mean, that is true.” Their hands trembled as they bit their lip and continued again, “You are absolutely right.” With this, they howled with frustration and stormed off.

Virgil and Remus quickly looked at each other before nodding. Remus quickly hurried off while Virgil remained with the confused group. “Sometimes they have trouble saying what they want to say,” he explained.

“So, were they trying to explain that they disagreed?” Logan asked. “Because, it is fairly simple to do so.”

“It isn’t for them.” Virgil put his hands back under his cloak as he looked to everyone remaining at the table. He addressed Roman and Logan, “So, I guess you two need tents, right? And the people you came with?”

Roman nervously combed his fingers through his hair. “Yeah, we didn’t really plan to stay here. We kind of thought we’d take Patton, Emile, and Remy, and then we’d run.”

“Not the best plan in hindsight,” Logan commented.

“Huh. Okay then. Well you guys should go find tent partners. Patton needs one, and I’m sure there are other people around who wouldn’t mind sharing. Feel free to walk around. Just, uh, don’t draw attention to yourself. ‘Cause you’re royalty and from Castellum...”

“Got it!” Patton said. He took Roman’s arm, and led him out of the cave. “You can stay with me! Let’s go to my tent!”


	12. The Three Couples

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 3603
> 
> TW: Food mention, night/darkness (nyctophobia), panic attack (+comfort), war mention, past death mention, past transphobia, misgendering, unaccepting family, past fire mention, crying, Patton angst (+ comfort), self hatred

“J! Wait up!”

Remus ran after the Snake, who was storming into their tent in rage. The Green Prince stood outside and poked his head in. “Yoohoo? Snek Snek?” The Snake sat on their cot, hat thrown onto the ground, cape tossed aside, and head in their hands. “Aww, J.” Waltzing over and sitting on the Snake’s left, Remus gave them a sympathetic look and awkwardly patted them on the back.

“Y’ tired?”

“No.” They groaned in frustration again.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Trace your Emblem and look at me.”

“I won’t,” they said as they took off their gloves and traced their Emblem, two snakes intertwined as one. The glamour faded away slowly, and they clasped their hands. The left side of their face was covered in green scales, and a long scar ran from their mouth to their ear. They blinked and their left eye was gold, similar to that of a snake’s.

Remus kissed their cheek and held their left hand, them turning in response. They shook their head sadly and sighed. “It’s only getting worse. My hand..” They slipped their hand from Remus’ and raised it. The Green Prince had barely noticed, but it was very clearly covered in green scales.

“Wow,” he said simply. “Wasn’t like that last time we held hands and kissed.”

“It wasn’t.” There was a bitterness in their voice, something Remus was not unused to when it came to them speaking of their...situation. Remus knew most of what had happened to the Snake and what caused them to undergo this slow transformation, and he knew just how to comfort them.

He gave them a hug and another kiss, this one deeper, and longer than before. They didn’t object, but rather melted into it. Remus pulled the two of them down onto the bed and they lay there, the rest of the world just outside the folds of their tent.

The night was upon them all, and the people had returned to their tents. The moon was beautiful and the stars were glittering. The wind swept through the area, bringing along the cool night air, the smell of pine, and the songs of change.

Virgil was sitting on the floor of his tent, turning his medallion over and over in his hands. As Virgil dropped his fingers to rub on the cool silver and the black cord, someone coughed from the entrance of his tent. He quickly leapt to his feet, only to find Logan clutching his bag, close to his side. There were dark circles under his eyes that Virgil didn’t quite notice before, and his glasses lay askew.

“What are you doing here?” Virgil hissed. “It’s getting late, and this is  _ my _ tent. Plus you look,  _ really _ out of it. Maybe we should get you to the medics tent?”

“Teach me.”

“Wh-what?”

“Teach me about your magic.”

Virgil blinked before, beginning to quietly snap his fingers behind his back. “Why would you want to learn about magic? Aren’t you some science-y doctor or something?” 

Logan was quiet, simply matching Virgil’s glare. “I’m an intellectual. I seek knowledge, in  _ all _ aspects of life. And I’m simply curious.”

“Didn’t you ever hear that curiosity killed the cat?”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t believe that a desire can kill a cat.”

“Figure of speech.” Virgil sighed, loosening his shoulders.  _ People are afraid of what they don’t know _ . And yet, Logan appeared to quite the opposite. There lay an insatiable hunger for knowledge in his blue (perhaps gray?) eyes. Virgil cast a quick glance behind him at the empty tent, then muttered, “What do you want to know?”

The teacher pulled out a notebook and various papers from his bag. He spoke hurriedly, his eyes lit up from excitement. “Well, I’d like to run some tests first. See your skills in action, simulate different scenarios, oh, and analyze that pendant you’ve got around your neck, let’s see…” Logan walked over and circled Virgil twice before sitting down on the ground and beginning to write in a thick leather bound journal.

The witch gently touched his pendant, the metal cool to the touch. Biting his lip for a moment, he quietly whispered, “No.”

“I’m sorry?” Logan looked up, from furiously writing. “You said something?”

“N-no. I won’t let you touch it, analyze it, whatever you’re going to do to it.”

“Alright then.”

Virgil stared at Logan, dumbstruck as he continued writing. “Th-that’s all it took?” he stuttered. “Just a ‘no?’”

“Well, I would prefer it if I  _ could _ ; it appears to be the source of your magic, or at least, some sort of magical object that enhances your power. But, your consent is important, as it is one of your own personal artifacts. We’ll just skim over it.”

“...”

“Thanks.”

“Of course.”

Virgil continued to stare at Logan, who began quietly muttering to himself as he continued to write. He shifted on his feet nervously before asking, “Okay. Um. This is going to sound really awkward, and it’s really stupid. But, um, would you be willing to stay in my tent? I don’t have anyone staying with me. I mean, at one point, Remus roomed with me, but then he decided to stay with the Snake, and they didn’t really mind, and none of the other new people really wanted to room with me, and it gets lonely, but um, yeah. Do you want to room with me?”

Logan looked on silently. Virgil cheeks were flushed with embarrassment. “Stars, that was stupid. I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize. It takes some nerve to ask a man who you’ve practically just met to stay in your home.” Virgil sputtered at the words, and Logan smiled apologetically. “I’m sorry; that might’ve only made you feel worse.”

“No, no, it’s cool, it’s cool.” Virgil pulled his hood over his head, and shook his bangs into his eyes, sitting down and trying as much as possibly to make himself smaller. Which was difficult, Logan was already far shorter than him, and in any scenario, Virgil would be the taller one. “So, you’re okay with staying in my tent?”

Logan stared at the end of his sentence, deep in thought before answering, “I don’t see why not.”

Virgil continued quickly, “Great. Great.  _ Great.  _ We’ll just have to get out to get another cot from a storage tent. We returned Remus’ once he started staying with the Snake. I only have one here, and it’s small, and you probably wouldn’t want to sleep on the ground.”

“I certainly wouldn’t,” the other bristled. “I never liked sleeping on the ground much. It certainly doesn’t help my poor old man back.” Virgil chuckled at Logan’s small attempt of a joke, and Logan smiled in response. Then he frowned, as he began to think, “However, it is rather late. Will there be people to help us situate a cot in here?”

“I-um, I don’t know.” Virgil’s mind was suddenly alive with possibilities and outcomes, and he thought aloud to Logan, but mostly himself. “Someone might be there. But they also could  _ not _ be there. We need someone to record who’s taking out the supplies and where it’s going. Plus someone needs to help us carry the cot since they’re kinda heavy. No, what? What am I saying? They’re not that heavy. Psh. Stupid. But what if someone sees us? They could mistake us for thieves! But no one can get in here? But people within our own camp could be trying to steal supplies for themselves. What if we ran into some now? But then again, you need a place to sleep…”

Logan noticed Virgil’s fingers, snapping, rubbing each other, and flicking at the air. He stood quietly to the side as Virgil paced about the room, his head down and his fingers grasping at ideas and fragments. At last, he could not hold his tongue and quietly asked, “Virgil? Can I putty hands on your shoulders?”

Virgil looked up from his trance and quickly nodded. Logan slowly approached and gently placed his hands on Virgil’s shoulders, the latter still moving his fingers. He looked the other in the eye, and Logan calmly asked, “Can you completely exhale for me?” Nod. Whoosh. Air. “Inhale for four seconds for me?” A quick nod. Inhale. Lungs tight. “Now hold for seven.” Slower nod. Closed eyes. Holding. “Slowly exhale for eight.” A wobbly exhale. Eyes slowly opening.A reassuring and gentle squeeze. “Repeat as often as you need to until your heart rate slows down.” Virgil bent his knees a little to nuzzle into Logan’s shoulder, as he began to speak quietly.

“While anxious, your heart rate may increase.”

Inhale.

“This breathing method helps with that.”

Hold.

“You might feel lightheaded,”

Exhale.

“At which point you should stop.”

Inhale.

“And adjust your timing,”

Hold.

“But this should help.”

Exhale.

Virgil slowly and reluctantly pulled away. He brushed the hair out of his face and smiled awkwardly. “Thanks.”

“Of course. We don’t have to go fetch a cot.”

“But your back-”

“Will be fine for one night.”

…

“Do you want to sleep in my cot? It could probably fit the two of us. You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“Will it be an inconvenience to you?”

“Nah. It should be fine.”

…

“I’ll take you up on that offer.”

Yes, Logan and Virgil shared a cot. It began awkwardly as they stood at opposite ends of the tent to change their clothes. Then, they stood next to the single-person sized cot and tried to figure out how they would sleep. Then, they ended up facing each other. Then, there was an embrace. Then, there was warmth.

And for those of you so desperate to know, yes, they continued to share a cot. And yes, just like Patton and Roman, these two fell hopelessly in love with each other in under 24 hours. Virgil looked around the next day and replaced the small and fragile thing with one large enough to fit two. Within the following few days, they became less and less awkward with each other. Their love followed them into the daylight hours, as they unconsciously reached and held the others hand. Logan would sit with Virgil in their tent, asking questions and learning about magic, and Virgil would sit with Logan in their tent, asking questions and learning about the state of the world outside and the many changes that occurred since his parents lived outside of the forest. They shared their pasts with the other, and they reveled in inside jokes and secrets. And eventually came-

Ah. But that would ruin the story, wouldn’t it? Where would the tension and buildup go? Let us continue onto our next pair of lovers.

The night is still young, dear readers. The moon has come nowhere close to its peak, and among the black sky, despite the dark forest surrounding the area, stars shine brightly, telling old and new stories to those who seek knowledge in their depths.

Roman looked up at the stars, just outside his and Patton’s tent. He wasn’t seeking knowledge, but he was enjoying himself. The air was cool and most, if not, all of the tents were dark. And from his little spot of grass, Roman could see more stars than he thought he could ever see in his life.

“Mind if I sit with you?” The prince turned to see Patton holding a blanket, a concerned look upon his face. “Stargazing is always nice when you’re with someone else.”

“Sure!” He patted at the spot next to him, grinning in the dim light. “Let’s stargaze, shall we?” Patton sat, wrapping the blanket around Roman, who quickly took it off and draped it over both of them, sliding a bit closer to the other.

Patton, surprised for a moment, blinked quickly before shuffling closer to Roman, closing the small gap that was left between them. He snuggled into Roman’s side, leaning his head on the other’s shoulder. “Ro, don’t you think it’s a little too small for the two of us?”

“You can’t just get a blanket for a prince and not yourself and expect them not to drape it over you too. You’ll get cold too, Patton.”

He shook his head gently, “It’s fine. You need the blanket more than me.”

“Patton, I insist. Please take it.”

Patton opened his mouth before shutting it. “Okay.” They lay together in this manner, simply staring at the sky, pointing out what they thought were constellations and laughing with each other over names and images the other saw. Under the blanket, Roman found Patton’s hand, and they melted into each other. Their hearts beat as one, and the night stilled as to allow them this moment of peace.

It was a long time before Roman asked, “Hey, Patt?”

“Yes, Ro?”

“Can you tell me about good memories of Illustris? Logan told me you two were from there, and he said that you had some bad memories there, but you can only tell me about the good stuff, if you want to!” he quickly added, at Patton’s surprised look. “I just, never really been there before, and you can only learn so much from books.”

The baker shook his head. “No, no. It’s fine, Roman. I can tell you about it. Gosh, it was a while ago.” He separated himself from Roman, scrunching his body and crossing his arms over his knees. He avoided Roman’s eyes and looked up.

“Well, you probably already know this, but Illustris isn’t really known for much other than its history. A lot of old historical battles happened near there. It’s kinda “old-fashioned” and such.

“It’s a beautiful place though. You can see the Celestial Mountain range in the distance, and the Astral River runs right through the city. The buildings are mostly one-story tall, though I’ve seen some with two, nowhere near as big as the ones you’ll find in Castellum. They all look the same though, off-white or gray walls and thatched roofs, with no discernable personality. Isn’t it neat when you can see from each building what it’s personality is like? And sometimes, the insides are different and  _ totally _ not what you expect! But, the insides of the houses in Illustris were just like the outside. There were never any surprises.”

“What about the people?”

“The people? The people were...okay. You either stuck with the old values and made the same recipe your ancestor made ages ago when they first built the town, or you embraced and longed for change. My family….well, my family…”

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, Patt,” Roman whispered softly.

His face scrunched up as he shook his head. “I have to do this, Roman. I want to tell you.”

“Are you ready to?”

Patton took a deep breath before nodding his head.

“My family wasn’t that great. I mean, my mom and dad tried their best, and they  _ wanted _ to raise a family together. They had toys and clothes all made before they had kids. I was the firstborn of four. Then, my mother passed after my third sister. My father wasn’t really ready to raise four kids by himself, and he had really high expectations, especially for me since I was the oldest, but he tried. He taught me how to sew, cook, and clean. I wore the dresses and stockings my mother made ages ago. My hair was long and my younger sisters would braid ribbons into my hair while I braided some into theirs.

“It’s funny, really,” he continued, chuckling grimly. “I always knew it wasn’t right. Being stuffed into dresses. Hearing people compliment my father, saying, ‘What lovely girls you have!’ Told that  _ this _ is who I was and that  _ nothing _ could change that.

“I stopped wearing dresses, and started putting on the  _ other _ clothes my mother had made, the ones my father had no heart to throw away. My sisters were confused at first, and then they began to tease and mock me. My father would have none of it. I was supposed to grow up into a ‘fine young woman’ and settle down and have kids and be a good mother.” He looked up at Roman, no tears in his eyes, but there was deep sadness and pain surrounding Patton, even as he smiled. It was all he could do, as he continued.

“I wasn’t totally opposed to all of that. I like kids, even though I don’t really want to bear one myself. I want to have a family with a guy, but not as the ‘doting mother’. I still loved cooking; it was kind of why I ended up spending a lot of time at bakeries, helping get ingredients and bake. But this body,” he said, gesturing down at himself, “Just isn’t me. It just felt off.”

Roman reached for Patton’s hand, slowly rubbing the back with his thumb. “Is that why you left with Logan?”

“Yeah.” He paused, biting his tongue before saying quickly. “I wasn’t in the house when the fires started. I was sleeping in the bakery I was practically working at. When I woke up, I ran over and they were already gone.” Patton’s voice took on an unusual and bitter tone as he continued, “I should have been there. If I wasn’t so selfish and so obsessed with trying to show who I was, then maybe they could’ve lived.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Slow your roll there, Patt,” Roman rubbed his back gently. “You couldn’t have done anything to change it.”

Patton turned to him, tears in his eyes as he smiled frantically and gestured wildly. “Nonono. You don’t understand! I should’ve been there. Ro, Ro, Ro, if I keep smiling, then no one will have to even know! If I keep everyone happy, then nothing bad will happen! I just have to do the good thing and make sure that everyone is happy and calm and  _ safe _ and no one will be hurt again!” He laughed, pressing a hand up to his forehead, as his breathing became more and more labored by the second. “Wha-what’s this? Am I-Am I  _ crying? _ ”

Roman reached over to hold Patton, but the latter only stood up and began staring at the sky. “Why am I crying? I can’t cry? Why? Why? Whywhywhy? I’m not  _ supposed _ to cry! What a silly notion! Silly! Silly Patton! Silly, silly, silly  _ stupid _ Patton! Stu-”

And suddenly Roman’s arms were wrapped around him, and Patton broke down into sobs. Crying and yelling and crying until he couldn’t cry anymore, Roman holding him the entire time, rocking him back and forth on their feet. “I’m here,” he said quietly into Patton’s ear. “I’m here.”

“I’m sorry,” the baker whispered. “I’m so-so sorry.”

“Don’t be. Let’s go inside, okay?” Patton nodded slowly, and Roman walked him inside the tent. He whispered quiet and soothing words; taking off Patton’s glasses, wrapping Patton in a blanket, and sitting on the ground next to Patton’s cot. “I want you to know that I’ll be here to help you to move on and I’ll be here to listen, okay? I’m going to help you.”

“Th-thank you, Roman.”

“I love you, Patt.” Patton opened his eyes and looked at Roman sleepily, as he continued. “I love you with all my heart. I love your smile and your laugh. I love the way you look at me, so filled with love. I love your kindness and warmth. I want us to get married and have a happy life together, that’s full of adventure and happiness and fun. I want us to adopt kids and take care of anyone who walks into our life. I want to be able to wake up and eat the foods that you make. I want to be able to make those foods  _ with _ you because I absolutely cannot cook.” Patton laughed at this last comment, encouraging Roman to go on. “You are my world Patton. You have found your way into every crevice of it, and I am full of so much love that I don’t know what to do with it except speak. I know that when the two of us are together, I am happy; I’m so happy beyond belief.”

Patton shook his head and smiled. “I-I don’t really know what to say. But you know what, Ro? I love you. I love you a lot. I love the way your hair bounces when you laugh too hard and how you throw your head back in laughter. I love how you can appreciate a good pun. I love your passion and energy and joy. I love how much love you have in your heart. There’s a fire there, and it blazes so strongly for the things you love. I love how you’re just you. A beautiful and amazing person. I want to be able to kiss you and live with you. I want to raise a family with you, and I want to be there to listen to you like when you listened to me. I love you, Ro.”

They looked at each other's eyes, and then they kissed. It was both gentle and passionate and ever so sweet, each clinging to the other’s warmth. The moment seemed to last forever, and once they pulled away, they were both breathless and chuckling and both immediately longed to be in the other’s warmth again.

“So I guess we’re staying together in this tent, Patton-Cake?”

A chuckle and tuck of hair behind the ear. “Yup. Let’s get ready for bed.”


	13. The Ridiculous Training

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 3713
> 
> TW: Food, Swearing, War discussion, death mentions, fire, knives

The morning came and by the time Roman woke up, Patton was still next to him in bed, sound asleep. Roman turned over, staring at the gently draping canvas. Sunlight snuck under the cracks of the tent; it must have been a nice day outside. Movement and chatter were just beyond their tent, and yet they were both in their own quiet world. Roman tried not to think of the events of the previous night, but the thoughts persisted. So he turned back to Patton, who began to stir at his movements. At last, he wearily opened his eyes and yawned, rubbing his eyes before locking them with Roman’s. 

“Good morning, Patton-cake.”

The baker giggled, and tucked an auburn curl behind his ear. “Mornin’.”

“Let’s get up and ready for breakfast, shall we?” He rose from the bed and offered his hand, which the other gently accepted.

Patton quickly learned that Roman took a long time to get ready in the mornings, and he didn’t mind at all. First, Roman had to wash his face with the clean basin of water under their cot. Then, he has to figure out how to manage his dark curls, combing it with his fingers to the side. He often used a comb and a hot rod to style his hair, often changing it nearly everyday. As of late, with all the travelling, he settled upon letting his hair simply rest upon his head as it naturally did. During periods of boredom (of which there were many on the road), he found himself playing with a few strands that he would try to pull down into bangs. Then there was the matter of clothing. Virgil had said to remain discreet, which Roman never did well. Patton stepped in with one of the spare sets of clothing he had received upon his arrival in the camp, fitting Roman fairly well since Patton preferred slightly larger clothing.

“Are you feeling better this morning?” Roman asked, as he loosely tucked in his shirt and began to put on his boots.

Patton was weaving flower crowns on the cot, and he looked up and smiled. “I’m better now. At least a little bit better.”

The Red Prince sat next to his lover, concern written across his face. “Are you sure? It was really heavy last night, and you got a lot off of your chest.”

The Baker pulled him into another kiss, which the other accepted wholeheartedly. “I’m fine. This kinda stuff takes time y’know? If anything, I should be sorry for telling you so much.”

“Patton, you’ve carried so much weight in your heart for so long. You don’t have to apologize for telling me. I want to hear you.”

“And I want to hear from  _ you _ . If you have anything you can tell me, you can tell me whenever you’re ready. Do you wanna talk now?”

Roman sat stunned for a moment, before saying, “Well, I’m afraid.”

“Everyone is afraid of something, Ro,” Patton said gently. “You can be afraid.”

“But I can’t. I mean, now that I know Remus is actually  _ alive _ , I don’t know who’s going to be king. I was rushed into learning all of this stuff after he was Called, and just before I’m supposed to be put in a position where I use the stuff I learned, I find out the person who was supposed to have the role is actually alive.

“In all honesty though, I don’t think either of us want to be king, or alone at least. I can’t speak entirely for Remus, but I know that I don’t want to be king. The Knight family has been ruling for years, all starting back with Alosan. But we’ve got to keep with the times, ya know? While I may romanticize going on quests and saving rather dashing young men from the clutches of evil, things are changing. Magnus is growing and learning, and our kingdom is falling behind others.”

“It can be...difficult to move on from the past, speaking from personal experience. You don’t know how the people will take it if you really do try to do good and help us move forward” Patton was silent before continuing, “So what kind of government do you imagine for Magnus?”

Roman grinned and bounced on the bed, nodding his head as he thought. “Well, I know that one person can’t do everything. That’s what Logan told me during our lessons, not that he’d ever take that advice for himself. So it’d have to be multiple people. And not everyone is experienced in certain areas of government. I know that Dice would sometimes just make decisions because he thought it was right, even though he never actually learned what the agricultural systems were like in Magnus. So, we’d want people who actually know what they’re doing. And I don’t think it should be kept in one family for generations. I think that new people with big ideas should be on board too!”

“Wow!” The baker chuckled. “Seems like you’ve got some big ideas.”

“I do! And-and once I get back to Magnus, that will be my first order of business! Once we end the war with the Relic, I’ll head back, and demand that we change!” Roman chuckled, as another thought crossed his mind. “Y’know what would be funny? If I completely gave up a role in the government and became an actor, just like I’ve wanted to since I was a kid.”

“You wanted to be an actor?”

“Or a performer. Sing songs and make music. Or simply just be on a stage, where I can be someone else and not a prince. Everyone’s expectations of me are high, and will still be high if I choose to perform, but it won’t be as heavy. I mean, criticism could hurt more, since singing and acting are things I love, but...it won’t matter, right? So much as I love what I do, and keep improving my skill, I’ll be happy.”

“Then leave, Ro! Chase your dreams! Be the person you want to be!”

“I can’t. So long as I have a duty to Magnus, I’ll always be held back. Besides, I want to help protect it. I just don’t know how. Do I chase my dreams and venture off into the unknown, or do I stay loyal to my duties and remain here, static and stable?”

Patton held his hand, “Do what you want to, and follow your heart.”

Roman smirked. “Well then, i’ll just have to follow you wherever you go. Because you, my love, are my Hartt and soul.” Patton laughed, and Roman gave him a kiss. “Thank you for the clothes.”

“Of course! Let’s go and get some food. The Dining Pavilion is probably going to be empty now.”

The clouds had mostly gone away, and the camp was bright. Despite the supposed war that was to occur in less than a week’s time, the people were going about their usual business cheerfully. At the pavilion, there were a few late risers, and many people cleaning up around them. Patton politely asked for some plates and utensils, and the couple sat on a stone bench at the edge of the pavilion, with some bread and fruit on their plates.

“So. What do you think the Relic is supposed to do?” Patton asked, taking a bite of bread.

Roman looked down at his plate of food, biting his lip. “I...don’t know. I can’t imagine a single way we could use it to stop a war. Ooh! Maybe it conjures gold and automatically measures out the gold we need to pay back, but it  _ would _ be a lot of gold and would probably end up breaking the thing. Ooh! Or maybe we have to put on a trial, and we have to punish someone! But who are we even supposed to capture and punish… I don’t know! It’s weird and confusing and probably useless.”

“Good morning.” Logan had entered the pavilion, Virgil right behind him with an unusually bright eyes. “I see you two are finally awake.”

“Awww, Lo. You still a little early bird?” Patton giggled.

“Well, no actually. I appear to be quite human. I do not recall a time when I was ever a- oh that was a figure of speech, wasn’t it?” The others nodded and together they laughed together. “So, Virgil,” Logan asked, “Would you mind explaining what we’re to be doing today?”

Virgil shrugged, “I dunno. The Snake has specific plans for everything. I don’t know the specifics, but I  _ do  _ know that they want us to figure out how we can use the Relic in battle. I mean, we didn’t know that it wasn’t some super weapon and was just some old scale, but we can brainstorm some ideas today, right?”

“That sounds like a great idea!” Patton looked down at his half-eaten slice of bread. “But, uh, could we finish eating breakfast first?”

“I would appreciate it if all of my guests were well fed during their stay.”

The Snake entered the pavilion, holding a large crook. They sat on the bench closest to Roman and Patton. The Red Prince narrowed his eyes. “Where’s Remus?”

“Oh, he’s simply setting up some training grounds for you all to soar and train on. We have little time to waste, if you are to be fighting.”

“Are you sure that it was a wise idea to leave Remus in charge of that?” Logan asked skeptically. “Unless his behavior radically changed from the last I saw of him two years ago, I doubt that we’ll survive training.”

The Snake shrugged. “I’m sure you’ll be able to handle anything he throws at you. There are certain guidelines I set up for him based on each skill set I would like you three to work on. Otherwise, he has free reign. He should be done soon. Virgil can take you to the grounds while I plan our next course of action. I will come for you in the afternoon.”

With this, they left the pavilion with their crook, presumably to go back to their office. Patton watched as they walked away, “I’ll be right back,” he whispered in Roman’s ear, before setting his half-finished plate down and running after the Snake, calling their name.

“Mx. Snake! Mx. Snake!”

They turned around, raising their eyebrows. “Yes, Mr. Hartt?”

“I’m a pacifier.”

They blinked rapidly and stared quizzically at Patton. “I’m sorry. A what?”

“A pacifier,” the young man said in complete solemnity.

Realization dawned upon, the Snake’s face, and they laughed. “Mr. Hartt, I believe you mean  _ pacifist _ .”

“Ehh, are you sure about that? I’m pretty sure I mean pacifier.”

“I believe I understand what you’re saying, Mr. Hart,” The Snake replied, a smile tugging at the corners of their lips. “The two of us can discuss the art of negotiation, while the others train, if you please. Perhaps you could help settle some terms with the other countries.”

“Sure! That sounds great! Hey, Roman!” he waved over at the Red Prince, who was making his way to the training grounds with Logan and Virgil.

Roman strided over, looking between the Snake and Patton. “What’s going on?”

“I won’t be coming over to the grounds with you. I’m not a fighter. The Snake and I will be talking about negotiating with people!”

“That’s okay, love.” He gave the Baker a kiss. “I understand. Just…” he looked over at the Snake, who wore an unreadable expression. “Be careful.”

Patton giggled. “I’ve only known your brother for a few days, but I think you should be  _ a little bit  _ more worried about yourself.”

-

And it turned out Patton was right.

“What in the name of the stars is this monstrosity?!”

Roman stared open mouthed at a strange contraption of unsteady platforms, spinning training dummies, swinging axes, and jets of fire. Remus sat comfortably atop of one of the poles shooting fire, grinning at the group below. “How’d ya like it, Roman?”

“How do I  _ like _ it?” he screeched. He gestured vaguely at the axes and ducked as a jet of fire shot it’s way towards him. The Red Prince sputtered incoherently at the ‘training grounds’. “I hate it!”

“Then it’s perfect!” Remus grinned.

Logan walked around, examining and trying to prod at the contraption without getting smacked, sliced, or singed. “While this does seem rather excessive, I must say that it is a rather impressive feat for you to have built this. Perhaps our physics lessons paid off.”

“Or perhaps, I just got a bunch of people to help me build this, and then they died in the process of simply building it!” The Green Prince cackled. The others stared at him, as he continued laughing. He suddenly stopped, and he grumbled. “I kid. I kid. SnekSnek and I stayed up last night making this, after they asked me if I wanted to make the training course for you guys. Lighten up, would ya?”

“Good to know that no one died, Remus,” Virgil remarked, as he walked around the contraction. He looked forward to see, Logan writing in his notebook. One of the poles closest to Logan began to spin and hiss. “Logan!” He looked up, and Virgil quickly ran over and tackled Logan to the ground, as heat flew over the back of his body.

They momentarily blinked, before scrambling to a seated position. “Oh, stars. I’m  _ so _ sorry. Gosh that was stupid.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine, I’m okay. No harm done.” Logan brushed himself off, his cheeks flushed a bright pink.

“Now kiss!” Remus called out from the fire pole. Virgil turned around and hissed, before slapping a hand across his own mouth, Remus cackling again.

“So, erm,” Logan said, scowling at Remus. “How exactly is this contraption meant to prepare us for a war? Would it not be more adequate to practice sword fighting skills?”

“They have fire! You need to learn how to be light on your feet!” Remus explained, hopping off of the pole. “Just keep moving, and try to hit the dummies!”

“And the rocking platforms?”

“You could be fighting on an unstable ground!”

“And the swinging axes?”

“Oh, I just put those there for fun.”

Roman walked from each end of the course to the other, rolling up his sleeves and shaking his hands. “Okay, okay. This looks… doable.”

Virgil’s eyes widened, and he gawked as Roman stood at one end of the contraption, a sword in hand and rocking back and forth on his feet, poised and ready. “Oh stars. You aren’t actually going to?”

“Yup. And I’m going! In three, two, on-”

“Hold up, hold up.” Remus waved his hands, and looked dead on in his brother’s eyes. “Are you going on one or go?” Roman rolled his eyes, as Remus laughed again, backing up. “Oh do go on! Go on!”

Roman shook his head, trying to focus himself again. “Okay. Three, two, one, go!”

He rushed up the wooden ramp. Suddenly, he stopped, inches away from the first of the large axes. The Red Prince looked at the swinging axes, moving rapidly back and forth. “One, two, three, four, one, two, three, four.” It swung back, and he quickly ducked through, the axe, barely missing.

A low hiss came from his right, and Roman ducked down as a plume of fire shot over his head. He could smell some of his hair slightly burnt, sweat soaking his skin even though he barely began the training course. Once certain that the heat was gone, he reached up to his head, and gently patted it, making sure all of his hair was still  _ absolutely fabulous. _

He got to his feet and looked to either side. Remus sat semi-amused above him, giggling on top of the pole that just shot out fire; Virgil’s mouth was agape, face pale and almost laughing from sheer nervousness; and Logan was mildly impressed. Great.

The axes only continued swinging, and Roman began to time it once again. One, two, three, four- He rushed forward past the first axe, when a training dummy suddenly popped in front of him from a trapdoor.

It began to spin immediately, it’s arms outstretched in a manner that only must have meant it was trying to assert dominance. Roman quickly made a thrust at it with his sword, landing a successful hit on one of the arms. “Yes! Oh! Oh stars! He quickly drew back his sword,as red liquid poured out of its arm. “Remus!”

“Relax! That’s strawberry jelly!”

Roman recoiled at the sight, and quickly moved around the training dummy. The axes almost appeared to be swinging in the directions that  _ Roman moved _ , analyzing his patterns. As he moved in one direction, the axe began to swing more violently in that area of its path. “Logan, this is defying all laws of natural physics!”

“I can see that! Just continue on! You’re about halfway there!”

“Easy for you to say, teach!” Roman grumbled. He began to step forward, when the platform began to shake and rock. “Oh stars, I think I’m going to be sick.” He held his arms out to balance himself, but it was to no avail. The ground continued to rock, as more fire flashed dangerously close behind him.

Roman quietly swore, before ducking past another axe. Another dummy, this one spinning with sharp knives, popped out of a trapdoor, and Roman quickly jabbed at it. As he pulled away, his sword stained with red jelly, a plume of fire shot out from where the dummy stood. He swore again as he backed up, narrowly missing the axe behind him.

In front of him now was a wall of fire. “Well, shit. Okay, then.” The platform rocked aggressively, forcing him to make the jump over and through. He miraculously found himself in one piece, completely unharmed.

“Courage test!” Remus called down to Roman. “Or as i like to call it, ‘The Dumbassery Test!’ You’re almost done. One last thing!” The Green Prince leapt down from his seat upon the fire pole and pulled an unseen lever. Suddenly, everything began to move much faster; the axes swung frantically, the training dummies popped up in random places, and the jets of fire shot out everywhere, even setting fire to the rocking platform itself. “Okay! Go defeat the final boss!”

Roman turned to face the end of the course, trying not to fall off. All other dummies fell away, leaving one in front of him. It was dressed in scraps of black fabric. Pieces of tin had been nailed to the shoulders, chest and knees. Fire shot out from either side of the dummy, and Roman jumped back as a literal ball of fire was shot at his feet.

He adjusted his stance, steadying himself. The Red Prince steadied his red jam covered sword and ran past the fire, thrusting his sword out to the dummy and managing to slip just below the chestplate. The course finally came to a stop, and Roman climbed down from the platform.

He sprawled himself on the grass, his hair singed, and his clothes blackened. There were streaks of red jelly on his face and all over his sword, and he simply closed his eyes as he addressed the other two.

“So. Who’s next?”

-

“I frickin’ hated everything about this,” Virgil groaned, taking off his singed cloak, and rubbing his shoulders as he plopped onto the darkened grass.

Logan sat carefully next to Virgil, wincing as every joint and muscle ached. ”I have never participated in such strenuous activity, and I would prefer not to ever again.”

Roman was silent, as the two talked and discussed the track. Remus had just begun his turn, nimbly leaping past axes and ducking and jumping over fire. He held his Sword in hand, and the Red Prince watched his twin swung at training dummies with reckless abandon. When the time came for Remus to jab at the poorly dressed, fiery dummy, he stood tall and straight, the best Roman had ever seen his posture. He could see Remus saying something, but he could not quite hear it and didn’t have much time to reflect on it before Remus slashed the head clean off the dummy.

The Green Prince bounded off of the platform, grinning. “I must say, that must’ve been record time!”

“I thought it was your first time doing the course,” Logan asked, raising an eyebrow.

Virgil waved him off, shaking his head. “Let ‘im have his moment. I’m going to go get a drink. Want anything from the pavilion?” he asked Logan, before quickly looking up at the twins, trying to make sure he didn’t exclude them. “It’s about late lunch time.”

“Actually,” Roman said quietly, “I want to see the Snake.”

“What?” Remus asked. “Why do you want that? What are you doing?”

“I need to talk to them about something. I have a few questions.”

Virgil looked at Roman, eyes narrowed. “They answered all of your questions yesterday.”

“Well I have some new ones.” Roman rose to his feet and began to march off to the large office marquee.

The others tried to stop him, but he shook off any questions or concerns. He burst past questioning eyes and found himself in the office of the Snake. Patton was standing at one end of the table, talking with the Snake. They both turned to the entrance, eyes widening as they caught sight of roman’s disheveled state. Patton hurried over to his lover, corern in his eyes. He put a gentle hand on Roman’s shoulder. “Ro? What’s wrong?”

“Something isn’t adding up. The Snake is hiding something from us,” Roman said simply.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” they replied coolly, their gaze cool and harsh.

“What is it that you’re keeping from us?” Roman asked quietly, gripping the edges of the table. “You told us about what is at stake, but you aren’t telling us everything. The war isn’t the worst thing that could happen, and it doesn’t look like we’re going to be fighting one. That training course had a ton of fire and some weird dummy with poor fashion sense. Who are we really fighting? And  _ who are you?” _


	14. The Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 1920 
> 
> TW: War discussion, death mentions

The Snake was taken aback by Roman’s directness, and they raised an eyebrow. The Red Prince did not relent, and so Snake sighed, before taking off their hat. “Virgil, may I?”

“Oh, um yeah. Sure. Here.” The Witch quickly pulled out a vial from under his cloak and handed it over to the Snake. They uncorked the bottle, made a show of swirling the clear liquid within, and emptied the vial. They shuddered, Remus quickly reaching over to grab their shoulders, then they stopped. Solemnly, they held the vial in their hands, turning it round and round for several moments. At last, they spoke, “We are fighting the Dragon Witch.”

The small group went silent, as everyone cast confused glances to each other. Logan looked at the Snake, “Who is she? How come we haven’t heard of her before?”

“She has evaded capture and history books for years, and is only known by few through word of mouth. Her Emblem is to transform into a dragon and tell prophecies of what is to and what already has come. She lives northwest of here, past Illustris, among one of the mountains in the Celestial Mountain range, Mount Astra to be precise.”

“Okay,” Roman grumbled, “But what does she want to do?”

“Well she wants to kill everyone of course,” Remus blurted out, causing everyone to turn to him. “She wants to make the kingdoms wage war upon each other with a big curse and have them destroy themselves, so she can swoop in and make the world as she wants to! The only reason Snek Snek here summoned everyone was to protect them from the Dragon Witch!” The group turned to the Snake for confirmation, and they nodded slowly, confirming what Remus had said.

Roman shook his head, and muttered quietly to himself before asking, “Remus knew?”

“And Virgil,” Remus added, the aforementioned Witch trying to shrink himself down in the corner. “We’ve known who SnekSnek wanted to fight for _ ever _ ago. We just didn’t know how they wanted to go about fighting her until this morning!”

“So why the big storms?” Roman asked, “That has been causing a lot of damage around here. And what’s this ‘Truth’ everyone says they hear when they’re Called to you? Nothing lines up!”

“That, dear prince, was the work of Virgil.” The Snake gestured to Virgil, who was currently unshrinking himself at Logan’s quiet request. “The Dragon Witch has only been setting more and more fires throughout Magnus, in places where I’ve Called people. Given my reputation, the people believe it is I who set them, but I can assure you that I did not. I’ve enlisted Virgil to put them out. The Dragon Witch only makes me out to be a villain. She has great power and great influence; no one even knows that they’re  _ being _ influenced.

“As for the Truth, it is merely that the world is bound to be destroyed, and it’s someone else who will do it, not me. Although, in some cases I may reveal something about the people I Call that I can gauge from the way they hold themselves; it’s a sort of talent of mine. Not the power of my Emblem, but my own talent I’ve nurtured over the years.

“I Call upon people randomly using a spell that attracts a person, or sometimes multiple people, to me. By casting the spell I know the name of who is to come, and that is it. I do not have an Emblem related to hypnosis or mind control, and I certainly cannot make fire.”

“If the Dragon Witch is all powerful, why haven’t you been found yet? This camp, I mean. If she’s ‘all-seeing’ wouldn’t she see us?” Patton asked hesitantly.

Roman sighed, crossing his arms across his chest. “And how do we even go about beating this Dragon Witch?”

“She can’t see us because Virgil cast a cloaking spell. To anyone outside who doesn’t know where they’re going and doesn’t intend on finding this place, they’ll turn away or simply see this as a patch of forest. The Dragon Witch is powerful, and she knows that we’re in this forest. She simply doesn’t know where. In order to defeat her, the Royal Twins, Roman and Remus, will need the Relic.”

“That’s what it’s for?” Remus scratched his head in confusion. “What are gonna do with it? Throw it at her and hope it hurts? I just thought we were gonna yeet fire back at her.”

“What is this word, ‘yeet’, that you speak of?” Logan asked Remus.

“A word I made up.”

“Interesting,” Logan, quickly jotted down the term in his notebook, and noticing the people watching, he put the little book away, clearing his throat. “Perhaps you could clear that up for me later.”

“Why did our dad make the Relic?” Roman asked the Snake. “Did he know about the Dragon Witch?”

“That remains unclear to me,” the Snake said carefully. “I do not know how your father made the Relic, or if it was even  _ him _ who made it. It may have simply been passed down through your family, accessible when two family members combine their Emblems in the name of a common predecessor. All I know is that he had it last. When we face her tonight, you two will know how to use it. It’s up to you two to figure out how to use the Relic and defeat her.”

Almost everyone groaned at this. “So there’s no concrete plan? We’re simply going to climb Mount Astra, and attempt to fight her on the spot?” Logan asked in frustration.

“Unfortunately, yes. It is the best we can do.”

“You’ve avoided my first question.”

The Snake raised an eyebrow, and turned to Roman. “I beg your pardon?”

“You’ve avoided my question.  _ Who are you? _ ”

The table went silent, and at last, the Snake sighed, “I suppose I must.” They slowly took off their hat, cape, and at last their gloves. The table caught a glimpse of their Emblem. two snakes intertwined and currently glowing yellow with power, before they traced it and the glowing subsided. Their image flickered for a moment before revealing their face, half the same as before, and the other covered in green scales. Their left eye was golden and not unlike that of a snake, and a scar ran from their mouth to their ear. They bowed their head, and quietly said, “My name is Janus Declos. I used to live with and train under the Dragon Witch. She gave me a fraction of her power, and it is what gives me the ability to see snippets of what she plans to do and use bits of magic.”

The jaws of those from Castellum went slack. Remus looked on sadly, and Virgil bit his lip. Janus continued, “I mean you no harm. I  _ do _ intend upon seeking vengeance upon the Dragon Witch. After all, she is the one who cursed me into slowly taking the form for which I’ve been so fondly named.”

“A snake,” Patton whispered quietly. His heart was full of pity, and he wished to offer some sympathy. But he held his tongue, as Janus gazed directly at him in such a manner that told Patton that they wished for no such thing.

“Yes, Patton. A snake. She also cursed me to lie or evade questions whenever I wish to share everything I want to. Virgil has been able to assist me in telling the truth, and Remus has also offered his assistance and support.”

“So how exactly were you cursed?” Logan inquired. “And, if I may ask, for what reasons?”

“She cursed me using dark magic to slowly take the form of a snake and to never speak the truth. It is thanks to Virgil and his parents, who realized that I was cursed, that I am able to speak the truth at times, and that the spread of my scales has slowed considerably. I may lie under stressing situations or when there is too much information that the Witch doesn’t want me to share, but with this new potion Virgil has given me,” they explained, raising the empty vial, ”I can lie and tell the truth as I please.”

“But  _ why _ were you cursed?” Roman asked, earning a glare from Logan and a nervous glance from Patton. “You must have done something bad to make her angry at you.”

“That is unnecessary information to the task at hand,” the Snake said coolly. “We must face her before she casts her curse.”

“How much time do we have?” Roman demanded pressingly. “When can we leave?”

“She plans to attack on the day of your coronation, giving us a week. Whether or not you get back to Castellum in time is irrelevant. She’ll cast the curse whether or not you’re crowned, and the world will erupt in war, so that she may rebuild it anew.” They pointed at the map on the table. “All of this will be gone, whether or not you or Remus are king. We must go face her with the Relic and defeat her before she casts the curse. If we leave now by horseback, we will arrive in about five days. That will give us only two more days to plan, and that is if nothing hinders our journey.”

Everyone around the table looked at each other uneasily. Remus and Roman broke the silence, “Let’s go now while we have the element of surprise.” They looked at each other, eyebrows raised. “For once we agree on something. Hey. Stop. I said  _ stop.  _ It was  _ my _ idea first. Really?”

Virgil and Patton broke out in peals of laughter, while Janus and Logan shook their heads and the twins continued bickering. Janus clapped their hands together, bringing the attention back to them. “You’re right. We can leave once you are all prepared to battle her. It will not only be one of strength; it will also be a battle of will and the mind.”

“I presume that we will all be joining the twins then?” Logan asked. “They will handle the Relic, you have a personal battle to fight, and we will help as much as we can. Virgil would be excellent in assisting with battle strategy, and I can help tend to any wounds you may receive. Patton would also do well at soothing everyone’s nerves if things get out of hand, so long as he remains calm.”

“But we don’t  _ have _ to fight her, do we?” The group turned to Patton, who hesitantly folded and unfolded his hands. “Can’t we just find a way to talk everything out? Maybe she has a reason for being like this.”

“Fighting isn’t the only option, but it’s our best bet of defeating her,” the Red Prince explained. “I mean, based on what Janus has told us, she has done a lot of bad things. Don’t you think she at least deserves to pay for her crimes?”

“I know,” Patton sighed. He looked up at the group earnestly, “But I can use my Emblem! And we can talk it all out!”

“With all due respect, Mr. Hartt,” Janus said coolly, “I believe that our best course of action will be to fight the Dragon Witch. I have shown you the art of negotiation, and you may do so if you please.” They dramatically swooshed their cape and exited the tent, saying as they left, “We leave tomorrow at dawn, and we will battle the Dragon Witch.”


	15. The Mountain of Stars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2317  
> TW: Food, Fire, Swearing, Screaming, Violence

Janus stood at the foot of the mountain, cape fluttering in the cool breeze as they looked up. There was an unpleasantly warm feeling in their chest, and visions quickly began to flutter through their mind if they closed their eyes for too long. They swore quietly under their breath, as their glamour flickered when a particularly vivid image flashed in their mind’s eye. They pulled off their right glove and traced his Emblem, allowing his glamour to fade away completely.

They were in the middle of pulling on their gloves when Remus came up behind them and landed a messy, frantic kiss on their lips. They cupped his face in their gloved hands and held him close before pulling away. The Green Prince pouted. “You okay, J?”

“Yes.”

Remus looked at them quizzically, unsure if they were lying or not, before shrugging and pulling them into a tight hug, which they gladly accepted.

The group of six were situated at the foot of Mount Astra, hidden under cover of trees, and not too far from the Astral River. Remus had already spent his fair share of their day making jokes about the river when they set up camp around noon. It was only one more night before the summer solstice and Roman’s coronation. The sunset wouldn’t come for hours, and Logan decided that they had no choice but to climb during the afternoon.

“We can take an hour to rest before we begin to climb.”

“Only an hour?” Roman groaned. “Teach, we’ve been riding all day!”

“ _ One hour _ , Roman. It will take us approximately six and a half hours to climb, if we keep a quick pace. This will leave us thirty minutes to stop the Dragon Witch from casting her curse. We can’t reach the summit in time if we wait for the cover of night. We must begin as soon as we can.”

Now, under the cover of the trees, they were resting by the babbling stream, not too far from where they intended to begin their climb. Brightly colored stones seemed to shine from the bottom of the river, and the trees shook pale leaves into the river, flowing gently downstream. Flowers seemed to carry pollen of glitter, and The low bushes bore silver berries. The entire place seemed to glow.

Roman pulled Patton under the shade of a particularly full tree, and began to pick the strange fruit off of a nearby bush. He quickly ran to wash them in the river (Remus “accidentally” tripping him on his way back, causing multiple trips- pun unintended- back and forth), and eventually returned with a set of damp, sparkling berries. “Wanna try some?”

“Well, sure!” Patton giggled. They looked each other in the eye and popped the fruit into their mouths. Patton stuck out his tongue, stained silver, “Ish eh cohlorfuh?”

Roman giggled and stuck out his own tongue, also painted bright silver. “Yuh!” Their giggles turned into bright peals of laughter, which quickly turned into side-squeezing howls.

Virgil eyed them from a distance, taking to picking up stones from the banks of the river. He turned to Logan, who was writing in a notebook above him. “Aren’t those memory berries?”

Logan squinted and peered over his glasses. “Hmm. Yes. It appears so.” He watched as Virgil continued to pick up stones, pocketing a few, before asking, “Do you mind telling me what exactly those fruits are used for? While I have heard descriptions of what they  _ could _ do, I’ve never discovered what they truly are.”

“I don’t really get them,” Virgil said, turning a particularly smooth stone over in his hands and pocketing it. “Apparently as you eat them, they kinda associate the berries you’ve picked with the emotion you were feeling as you ate them.”

“So they’re magical?”

“ _ Very. _ And they only grow here. These plants are sacred to the creatures who live here. But like, what does that mean if you feel a bunch of different things while you eat, or if your emotions suddenly change? I don’t really get it, which is why it’s not really in my line of work. Clouds and rain are things I can see and feel with my hands. It’s a lot more comforting than being alone with your emotions and some berries.”

“Intriguing.” Logan looked about the camp, before jostling out of his seat. “Where are Remus and Janus?”

“Oh shit.”

-

Janus held their crook tightly in their hands and peered around the entrance of the cave. “That’s... unusual.” They entered slowly, observing the place for any movement.

The cave was dimly lit with a few candles scattered here and there. There was parchment, littering the cold stone with neat words and symbols; tables, full of empty glasses and bowls; jars of herbs and crystals; and books, a plethora of books large and small, also filled with scribbles and symbols. Otherwise, the cave appeared to be empty.

“ _ Janus. _ ”

They leapt up in surprise, before leaning upon the nearest table nonchalantly. “Remus. I wasn’t surprised at all.”

“I couldn’t help it,” the Green Prince said, holding his Sword aloft. “The cave helps make some spooky echoes.” He looked around, prodding at the edge of a sheet of paper with the tip of the Sword. “What is this place?”

“This is where the Dragon Witch worked,” Janus explained, “when I was around, at least. She liked being near the river.” They looked over the closet sheet of paper on the table, filled with diagrams and neat script. Their eyes widened as they read. Alarmed, they stood upright, eyes glued to the paper. “Remus?”

“Mmhm?”

“We need to leave, and climb  _ now _ .” They turned around and found Remus’ hand stuck in a jar of foul-smelling liquid. “What are you doing?”

“Uhhh. Sticking my hand in a jar of juice.”

“Remus, darling, I doubt that liquid is juice.” Janus took their crook and pulled the jar off of Remus’ hand, allowing the liquid to splatter on the cave floor. “We have more pressing matters at hand that must be attended to immediately.”

“J, cool it, would ya? I’m sure it’s fine. That’s just some old piece of paper.”

“ _ It is! It’s perfectly fine! Don’t look at this piece of paper! There’s nothing on it! The ink is dried! _ ” They groaned and quickly hurried out of the cave, Remus just at their heels.

They emerged at the campsite, where the others were looking for them. “Stars, where have you two been?” Virgil asked, hurrying to their side. “You can’t just wander off like that! You should have told at least one of us.”

“Sorry, Virgil, but we must climb at once. Or even better, do you know a spell that can get us to the summit of the mountain as soon as possible?”

“Well, um, no i don’t, but can you slow down for a bit please? What’s going on? Are we in danger? Did you see her?”

“No, but I went to her study cave and found a piece of paper that dictated how she was going to cast her spell and when. We must climb Mount Astra and reach the peak before sundown.”

Logan approached them, notebook in hand. “Before sundown? But janus, that’s impossible.”

“It's a trap.” Virgil rubbed his fingers over a stone in his hands. “There’s no way she’d write down her entire plan and put it on a table where you could conveniently find it. She’d predict you coming and set it as a trap. That’s a thing she can do, right?”

Logan frowned. “But surely she’d predict you saying no as well, correct? Thus, she’d influence us to stay away from her, and she could carry out her plan in full.”

“Or maybe she saw none of this coming!” Remus piped in.

“Whatever the case, we must go at once,” Janus flipped their cape dramatically. “There is no time to waste.”

Logan turned to the sky, trying to pinpoint the summit of the mountain. What is peculiar about Mount Astra is the flat summit. When seen from afar, it appears that the top had been sliced off. Many different stories had described what caused the mountain to be so, but none knew the entirety of the story.

“Do we need to climb to the summit?”

“Yes! That’s where she will be casting her spell!”

“It will take approximately six hours and a half hours to climb. Leave behind all unnecessary materials. I suppose that we will begin climbing now.”

-

Just as Logan predicted, it took them a little over six hours to climb. The mountain was not extremely steep, but it was just enough, so the climbing proved to be complicated. Virgil had to cast several spells to stop the others from tumbling down. Roman tore off pieces of his capelet to distribute as face coverings, which the others took gratefully. The sun beat down on the backs of their necks, and strange glittering dust blew into their faces. All the while, Janus continued to lecture the others about the dangers they would inevitably face and why should be going faster.

“Don’t push yourself too hard, but go as fast as you can.”

“Well, you’re a little bundle of contradictions, aren’t you?” Roman grumbled under his breath.

But when they reached the top, they saw no one. The mountain was flat-topped, and the view showed them the most magnificent sights they all had ever seen. There were, naturally, the other mountains of the Celestial Mountain range to either side. To the northwest, Archen’s countryside, with lavish villas and flowering fields, and the setting sun. To the southeast, Magnus’ forests and the Astral River, snaking its way from the mountain and off to the horizon, where it would eventually meet the coast.

The summit itself was arguably just as magnificent as the views it provided. It was amazingly a perfect circle, completely made of quartz which seemed to glow with magic. Twelve stone pillars stood, holding up the sky, brilliantly speckled with stars. As the group pulled themselves into the ring of pillars, they found the wind had given them new breath, feeling light and refreshed.

However, the Dragon Witch was nowhere to be seen.

“You have got to be kidding me!” Roman groaned. “Where is she? Aren’t we supposed to have some dramatic face off?”

Virgil looked at Janus. “We shouldn’t have come up here. We have to get back down!”

Janus walked around each pillar. They traced the carvings and looked at the other mountains in the range. “This is new,” they quietly murmured. They turned back to the group. “She must be here somewhere.” As they traced the twelfth pillar, a plume of fire shot down at their hand. They quickly jumped back, no damage done, but they looked up in horror at the figure above them.

She turned, smiling, and entirely composed atop the pillar. Her white hair was held back in a thin and long braid. She did not, however, look a day over 40, despite her supposed immortal status. Curved golden horns rose from the side of her head, and a dark dress draped elegantly upon her slender body, with golden pauldrons to complete her set. Her eyes were a cold stormy gray, and she looked with curiosity at the group in front of her.

With a flick of her finger, the streams of fire wrapped around each person’s wrists, waists, and ankles, chaining them in place but never burning them. The group looked frantically at each other, and she laughed, the sound of cold, harsh bells. “Why hello there, children. I see that Janus has brought you to me? Such a lovely child they are. So intelligent and so cunning. You’re all right on time.”

The Dragon Witch gracefully hopped off of the pillar and walked forward, as the group continued to struggle. She tutted her lips and looked up and down at each of her prisoners. “Oh Janus, dear. You’ve found yourself a partner?” she asked lightly, turning her head to the side as she gazed at Remus, who snarled in response. “He certainly doesn’t look fit to be a king. Oh no, not in this state.”

Janus’ eyes narrowed. “What sta-”

“Shit!” Remus yelled, trying to shake off the chains, only to yell even louder. “What the fuck, lady?!”

“Remus? What’s going on?” Janus asked quickly, struggling against the fire chains. As suddenly as it began, the Dragon Witch snapped her fingers again and Remus’ screaming stopped, the chains dissipating as he fell to his knees, gasping for breath. Janus straining against the chains, desperately trying to get a look at their boyfriend. “What did you  _ do _ to him?” they hissed.

“Oh, I just made him actually  _ feel _ the fire. Emotions are such a powerful tool and have no place in my realm,” the Dragon Witch explained. She spotted Patton, pale and sweaty. He hadn’t bothered to fight against the chains, but the sight of Remus in pain was enough to make him sick. His eyes widened when the Dragon Witch spotted him, and he began to quickly shake his head.

“How about we talk this out? Can we just talk? We don’t need to hurt anyone else? Right?”

The woman walked across the crystal, her boots thumping with each step. She looked Patton up and down, and snapped her fingers once again, a hand of fire grabbed him and dangled him over the edge of the cliff. Roman and Logan both screamed this time, and the Red Prince began to struggle even more, in a futile effort to be free from the chains.

Her gaze fell upon Logan. She smiled warmly at him and received a cold glare back. “Oh, you look so much like your mother, Logan.”

“I suppose you know my heritage due to your prophetic abilities.”

“ _ Prophetic abilities? _ Oh no, Logan. I know because I care deeply about my family.”


	16. The Dragon Witch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2321
> 
> TW: death discussion, swearing, lighting/thunder, knife, swords

Those within earshot of their conversation were dumbfounded. Logan himself was slowly opening and closing his mouth before sputtering, “How exactly are you-”

“Wenfia, my dear. Your ancestor from back and back and back.”

“B-but you died,” he stuttered, “The family had always said you passed peacefully in the shop after years of working there. The family journals said so.”

The Dragon Witch, Wenfia, looked bitterly at the man in front of him. “Don’t believe every single word you believe, Logan. I expected better from you.” He slowly closed his mouth, his eyes glazing over as she stared at a fixed spot in the sky opposite to him. She gave an unsatisfied ‘hmph’ and turned to the three people remaining in front of her. “I have no time for this. You,” she said, pointing at Virgil, “Will be of good use to me. You,” she said, pointing at Janus, “Will pay for plotting against me. And  _ you _ .”

Roman shuddered under her gaze. Wenfia pulled him back with the chains, bringing him to his knees, next to Remus. “You and your brother shall pay for the crimes of the Knight family.”

The twins looked to each other with confusion. “Do you know anything about this?” Roman asked. Remus groaned and shook his head.

Wenfia stood, a mixture of disgust and rage on her face. “You know  _ nothing _ ? Of what your family has done? You two are a disgrace.”

“I want answers,” Roman demanded. “Won’t it be more satisfying for us to have died knowing what our family had done, ashamed that we were so ignorant not to have known sooner, rather than dying for seemingly no reason?”

“He has a point,” Virgil mumbled, before turning his head to look at Roman. “What? No! Are you  _ asking _ to be killed?”

“Information is valuable to have,” Logan murmured to himself. “It’s questionable whether it’s always better to know information that you may regret. But you cannot be blind to the truth forever.”

“An excellent point,” Janus quietly added.

The Dragon Witch looked at each of her “guests” before shaking her head with exasperation. “Very well then.” She cocked her head to the side, looking at the twins before saying. “It was your family that caused me to leave my home inn Ilustris and hide away here on Mount Astra. They would have killed me for having an Emblem that gave me magic, a type that they could not control. The power to see the past, present, and future, all while in the form of a dragon. A creature not many are particularly fond of.

“When the Royal Alson, your ancestor, came to my little bookshop, I was beyond pleased. My husband and my daughter prepared everything for their visit. They came and chatted merrily with our family. They looked through our wide collection of books, surprised to find some they had never even heard of and purchasing them for their own collection.

“I took them out to our back garden, where I would have room to turn into a dragon. But when I told them their future, a future in which their kingdom would inevitably collapse due to their descendant’s foolishness, they gave me until the next day to hide. The following day, knights would be sent to take me away to the prisons beneath the castle in Castellum.

“I never said a word to my family, only leaving a quick note that said I was to be written in the family journal as ‘deceased, due to natural causes.’ I took what few arcane and magical texts we had, and hurried away. Mount Astra was always beautiful, in my eyes. And here, is where I made my home. I read. I saw the world through books. I conquered death. I found my own magic through pyromancy. And I  _ lived. _ I lived as I never did before when I had those townsfolk and that  _ Royal _ breathing down my neck.

“They all fear what they have no control over, and that is why they fear the truth. I will show mankind the Truth that they fear. The Truth that they will inevitably destroy one another through greed, and anger, and selfishness, and ignorance. Their hubris blinds them from ever seeing it. And since this will  _ always _ be the case, I have no choice, but to show it to them by bringing the future to them.”

Roman blinked several times. “Well that was a little bit more than what I expect you to tell me, but uh I can’t blame you, since I’m a bit of a monologue person myself. And quite honestly, I think I can do better.”

She snarled, and the bonds on Roman’s body tightened. The Dragon Witch quickly traced her Emblem, a black dragon surrounding a crystal ball, and turned into a magnificent dragon, easily the size of a small house, black with golden wings, claws, and horns. She roared at the sky, a plume of fire shooting out of her mouth as she began to beat her wings and hovered around the summit.

Luckily, with her powers now focused on maintaining her form, the fury bonds dissipated. Patton was returned to the cliff, and the others were released. They had little time to relax, before the Dragon huffed angrily at Roman and Remus. The former quickly grabbed his brother and carried him away, placing him behind a pillar. “Come one, Remus. Wake up. Wake up!”

Janus leapt forward towards the Dragon, shepherd's crook in hand. They spun it dramatically, before stamping it on the ground. Yellow energy filed the area below the head, buzzing with power, and Janus directed it towards the Dragon. She took a hit, howling in response.

Virgil traced his Emblem the second the fiery chains bonds broke free. He was now doling out lighting faster than ever, trying to direct it towards the Dragon. However, he quickly found this proved to be draining, and he settled upon beating down rain clouds on her, with the occasional lighting bolt and thunder.

Logan didn’t know who to go to. On one hand Remus, and the other, Patton. Logan hurried over to Patton’s side. “Are you alright? Are you hurt?”

The Baker stretched and grabbed onto the nearest pillar as the ground shook. “I’m okay, Lo, just a little sore.”

“Are you sure?”

Patton opened his mouth to say something then shook his head. “Okay, so maybe my chest hurts a bit, but it’s not awful. No cracked ribs or anything. Just go help Remus!”

“I’ll be back,” he quietly said, and hurried over to Remus.

Roman was already summoning his Shield as Logan approached. “Logan! Please help him! I need to go beat up this dragon lady.”

“Of course. Now, go! And do be careful!” he quickly added, as Roman plunged into the fray.

Roman had often fantasized about how he would beat a dragon, like those in the novels did. However, he never anticipated that the dragon would also be a witch. Sure he  _ hoped _ that his first dragon would not be slayed, but instead, another (perhaps not quite as) handsome prince.

But he took this in stride. He ran across the crystal summit, unsheathing his sword. He raised his Shield and planted it down on the ground, flames cast aside by the Sheid. The Dragon’s attention was now cast on him. Beads of sweat formed on his skin and he pulled out the Shield, and continued to deflect more fire.

Logan brought Remus to, who groaned and tried to sit up. “Lay down,” he said sternly, setting upon inspecting Remus’ body.

“It was hot and it hurt, but it did nothing to me,” Remus explained.

“Your fainting spell says otherwise,” the Doctor grumbled.

The Green Prince sat up completely. “No, I’m serious. I’m fine. But it was like it drained the energy outta me. Ya know?” Logan looked at Remus with a mixture of concern and worry. “Welp! Time to get banging!” Remus quickly rose to his feet, then wobbled unsteadily.

“Remus. Rest.”

“I’m going out there, Little Logan. And there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

The Doctor helplessly looked on, as Remus threw himself onto the battlefield and summoned his Sword, yelling taunts and occasionally throwing his Sword at the Dragon.

Janus watched as Remus ran around, waving his arms around and yelling. They chuckled, then frowned. He was going to push himself too far wasn’t he? Still summoning more balls of energy and light, they side stepped over. Remus threw his Sword at the Dragon again, only for her to blow a jet of fire at it and have it reappear in Remus’ hand. “Damn it!”

“Remus, did Logan let you back on the field?”

“Nah. He tried to stop me.”

They sputtered, accidentally throwing the ball of energy at a pillar. “Remus! You were in pain!”

“Exactly! I  _ was _ in pain! I’m all good no-ah shit,” he winced. “Get me behind a pillar. Please. Ah shit!”

Logan hurried back to Patton, laying him down.

“May I?”

He nodded, and Logan quickly began his work. “You’re not unsafely binding your chest are you? Tying those bandages or that burlap sting thing you did years ago is unwise” Logan quietly asked, just loud enough to be heard over the yelling.

“No. I’m not. Ah! That hurts!”

“Sorry. How hard did she grab you?”

“Hard. Ahh!”

“Sorry! This should be good enough for now,” he said, sitting Patton up. “I can’t do much else without any proper tools. We’ll get you check out when we get back to camp.” Patton nodded and hugged Logan. “Ah-this seems counterintuitive.”

“Thank you, Lolo.”

Logan hesitated, before returning the hug. “Of course, Patton.”

Virgil was getting tired. The battle was long, and it didn’t even seem like much damage was being done. Some of the dragon scales were a little bit more scuffed up, but she seemed completely unfazed. He looked out of the corner of his eye, and Logan was helping Patton to his feet.

Logan caught his eye, and quickly rushed forward. “Virgil!” Virgil felt the heat and immediately knew what was about to happen. He turned to face the jet of fire, but Logan tackled him aside.

“Logan! Stars! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine!”

Remus watched the pair, and huffing, crawled away from the pillar over to Janus and quickly kissed them. He held up his Sword. “Can I try something?”

“By all means, go ahead,” Janus said, summoning another ball of energy.

The Green Prince grabbed the shepherd's crook, still filled with magical power, and threw both the crook and Sword at once.

The Dragon howled, and the Sword rematerialized in Remus’ hand. “Remus?” Janus asked. “My crook?”

“Oh. Uh. it’s on the ground over there. Hey Patton!” Remus waved to grab the Baker’s attention, wincing as he realized he couldn’t stretch his arms high. He quickly ducked behind another pillar and grimaced as he felt his body.

The Baker was already making his way over to grab the crook. He ran behind a pillar, picking up Janus’ crook. “Janus!” They turned, and he threw it back at them, Janus nodded in affirmation.

Roman held up the Shield and hurried across the summit, the Dragon huffing angrily in his direction. He darted to the side as she breathed a line of fire in his direction. He ducked and weaved, just as the course Remus had made taught him to do. He made his way behind one of the pillars, looking down the side of the mountain quickly before staring up at the night sky. He never realized how up he was until now.

Roman looked to the side and noticed Remus, flush against the pillar to his right, the Sword in hand. “Remus!” Roman hissed. “We have to do it now!”

He grinned wildly, raising his Sword to the sky. “It’s about time!” They both stepped towards each other, away from their hiding places and the Dragon turned to them. She roared and howled, but they simply faced her, and raised their Emblems to the night sky.

“For Creon!”

The light from the Sword and Shield flashed brightly, and the Dragon blew a stream of fire at the twins. Janus leapt in to deflect and protect them, shattering their crook in the process. The Dragon was about to hiss at them again, when suddenly she stopped. Everyone turned towards them. The Royal Twins stepped forward, holding the Relic by the lever. They smirked, composed, powerful, and for the first time together, regal.

Then Remus broke the silence, “EAT METAL, BITCH!” and tried to throw the Relic at the Dragon.Roman grabbed the Relic out of his hands and held it out on his own, saying, “Your reign of terror is over, Dragon. You  _ will not _ cast a curse upon us all, and you  _ will not _ bring about the end of the world. Cease and we may grant you mercy!”

For the first time in the battle, she took on a human voice, and she cackled, “I had no need to cast a curse to spark rage and violence. I simply needed  _ you _ to not attend your own coronation.”

Horror dawned on Roman’s face, as he stood frozen, holding the Relic. Remus snarled and flew into a frenzy.

He grabbed the Relic back and launched it at the Dragon, hitting her in the eye.

He grabbed Roman’s sword and threw it with unnatural strength at her chest, which it tinked off of.

He grabbed shards of Janus’s shepherd's crook and hurled them fruitlessly in the Dragon’s general direction.

And he screeched with intense volume, forcing the others to cover their ears, and the Dragon to screech and moan. She flapped her wingers about, and suddenly fell upon the summit, as a human.

The other’s turned to Remus slightly in shock. He simply brushed himself off and giggled. “A job well done, if I do say so myself!”


	17. The Snake's Tale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2283
> 
> TW: Fire/arson, implied character death, blaming character for things they did not do, food

She laid on the ground, a crumpled mess. Her hair was loose around her face, much more wrinkled than before. As she struggled to rise, Remus whispered quietly to Roman, “We should throw her off the mountain.”

“No, let me talk to her.”

The twins turned and watched as Patton crossed the still room to the Witch, the Relic in hand. Roman looked down; the Relic had been taken from his hands, and he hadn’t even noticed.

Patton offered the Witch a hand, holding the Relic in the other. She looked up at him, confused. “Heya,” he said quietly. “Need a hand?” She hesitantly took it, frowning. “I deactivated my Emblem,” Patton quickly explained. “Let’s just talk.”

He guided her to a sitting position, and he joined her on the floor, giggling nervously as he sat. “So, um, what’s your name? I couldn’t really hear it from the cage outside.”

“Wenfia.”

“That’s a really cool name! So, tell me about yourself. What do you like to do?”

“Write. I look into the past, present, and future; and I write of the things I see, not that anyone would ever bother to read them.”

“Why not?” She looked up at Patton, concern scrawled across his face. “I mean, every word you say usually ends up becoming true right? Especially if you’re looking at what happened in the past!”

“That’s the issue,” Wenfia explained. “With such great power, people fear me. They fear what they do not know or understand. They fear the Truth, and those who know it.” She pointed at the twins. “The Knight family, especially, has feared the Truth. You  _ cower _ behind the masks of wealth and innocence, when you are anything but.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Let’s take a minute here before things get a little too  _ heated _ , okay? What can we do to help you?”

“‘ _ What can you do to help me? _ ” she hissed, her eyes flashing “There is  _ nothing _ you can do to help me. The royal Alosan and Knights after them had persecuted all of those in the land practicing magic, other than those whose families had paid massive amounts of money to the Knights. I could never afford this, and with Alson themself angered by my prophecies, I had to  _ hide _ for eternity. I have waited centured for revenge, and you-you  _ baker _ stand in the way of me righting centuries of prejudice and injustices! The only way to  _ help _ me is to stand out of my way as I  _ incinerate _ the filthy royals.”

Patton’s face was serious, unsettling Roman. He had never seen Patton in such a way. His emotions were always strong, whether they be feelings of elation or agony. The Baker shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I can’t do that. Whether you realize it or not, people are counting on them to return to Castellum. People like me! And I love Roman. I’m  _ never _ going to let any harm come to him.

“Besides, they are different people! They’re not like Alosan! They love magic and are fascinated by it!” His eyes lit up, and he fumbled in his pockets before pulling out some silver berries. “You probably know what these are, but I gotta say. I tried them earlier today and they were  _ berry  _ good! You should try them! They’ll cheer you up.”

Wenfia frowned for a moment, eyeing Patton skeptically. She took a single memory berry from his hand and rolled it over in her fingers, before making eye contact with Patton and eating the very, Warmth flooded in her body from the small fruit and she immediately began to laugh.

Her laugh was unusual. It was not cruel or harsh. It was not cold or distant. It was warm and bright, eerily reminding Janus of the woman they looked up to all those years before. As they thought this, she looked at them, as if she could sense their thoughts.

“They know nothing of your story, do they dear?”

“I keep my past close to my chest.” they replied, “As I’m sure you can understand after you had cursed me.”

“Would you like me to tell them?”

Janus looked at her, and slowly sat down.. They simply nodded, and Wenfia prepared herself. “Gather round, gather round.” There was something about her air. It had shifted considerably, but this reminded all of them of who she used to be: a bookshop owner, and a storyteller.

“Once upon a time, there was a young teenager named Janus Declos. They lived in Parmia, a small trading city on the Astral River that was alive with magic. There, magic ran freely in the streets, and Janus was fascinated by it. They were ambitious and intelligent, and knew  _ exactly _ where they wanted to be in life. Their family had left them years when they were young, and living in Parmia, Janus had done whatever they could to survive and take care of their needs first.

“But they were curious, and a small part of them was angry.  _ Why were they left behind? _ Tales spread by word of mouth in Parmia, and Janus once heard of an ancient witch, who could see into the past, present, and future, who lived up the river somewhere on Mount Astra. They left for the mountain, following the river upstream and using their Emblem to take the forms of others to sneak their way onto wagons and carts to make the journey faster.

“After passing through forests and countryside, they arrived at the mountain. The witch had anticipated his arrival, and was waiting at the foot of the mountain. ‘Are you Janus Declos?’ she asked.

“‘I thought you’d be much older. You’re said to be a millennia old,’ was the reply.

“She laughed. ‘You are peculiar. Would you like to stay here and become my apprentice? At the end of your apprenticeship, I will tell you the Truth.’ And Janus could not say no. The Witch then gave them a fraction of her power, creating an emotional bond that only strengthened overtime. For years, she taught them magic and ancient, long forgotten histories, and Janus...saw them as a mother.

“One day, she had begun to teach them how to gaze into the future, a skill she had mastered long ago. Janus closed their eyes, and asked themself a question that troubled them for quite a long time, ‘What will bring about the end of the world?’ With this, they saw a vision of the Witch, battling people Janus did not know, and the world a light with war and anger.

“They confronted her, and she, never one for confrontation, simply cast the first curse she could think of: a transformation curse. She slowly cursed them to take the form of a snake, and seeing it as not punishment enough, cursed them to forever tell lies.

“Janus ran away in shock and horror, and the Witch herself was shocked and horrified by what she had done. She called out apology after apology, but Janus ran. They attempted to hide, but she always found them. However, their bond was slipping with both physical and emotional distance. In petty rage, she traveled into towns and cities herself. She cast spells and spread rumors of a person who was a liar, a deceiver, and a Snake.

“Janus found no peace in any city they traveled to, for the exertion of continuously using their Emblem to hide their appearance was too much. They found themself driven away from city to city, and eventually, they found themself at the Forest of Ilarya, or as it is more commonly known now, the Midnight Forest.

“They had continued to lie profusely, but a witch couple and their son took them in. They cast a spell to hide them all away from the world, the witches having found prejudice, and Janus seeking solitude. It was the son, Virgil, who found a way to slow and counteract the curses. He was able to slow the spread of the scales across the person’s body, and gave them a potion,so that they could speak truths, even if only for a short while. They became close with Virgil, but one day when the two of them went traveling out to the market in secret, the Dragon Witch found Virgil’s parents and set a fire. She then cast a spell turning the woods dark. It was at this point when it became the Midnight Forest.

“The two friends sought to protect all that they could from the Dragon Witch, and set aside a large part of the forest, casting protection and invisibility spells in order to hide them away. They Called forth citizens they met at the market, and eventually began to use larger spells to summon more. The Dragon Witch saw these people in her mind’s eye, all traveling to the forest. Eventually she stopped her search for Janus, but instead silently flew to towns and cities where people had been Called and set fires to blame upon Janus. 

“I’m sorry for being so hot-headed and awful.” She smiled sadly. “Even though I was a millennia old, I still managed to act like a child.”

Janus looked her up and down, before quietly saying, “I’m not ready to forgive you. Not quite yet. But thank you for your apology.”

“You think a child would curse someone because they found out their secret plan to take over the world?” Virgil asked dryly.

Wenfia shrugged. “I suppose so. I’d expect my children to.”

“Well, unfortunately for you, I had no experience or understanding of the basic fundamentals of magic,” Logan said. “No matter how hard I tried.”

“That  _ is _ a shame. But you’re so young! So much potential to do whatever you wish in your life!”

“So are you gonna kill us or…?” Remus asked, leaning against one of the intact pillars.

“Please don’t kill us,” Roman said. “I’d like to have at least another fifty years with Patton.”

The Dragon Witch shook her head. “I suppose that Logan and Patton have a point. I will not kill you two, nor will I attempt to promote war in Falea.” Everyone else sighed with relief, as she continued, “However, I would like to know what you two were doing with that scale.”

Patton held up the little pewter scale. Roman and Remus frowned. “We don’t know.”

“I thought it was supposed to be some super secret weapon we could use to defeat you,” Roman said quietly.

“Pfft. I thought we just needed to whack you with it!”

“In part, yes. You could use it to destroy me. Alosan created the Relic with the original intention of seeking justice in the world, and finding the balance between the magical and the mundane as they saw fit,” Wenfia explained. “They only sought to limit it, and the Relic could do just that, changing the scales to be in the Knight family's favor. It would take away the powers of one’s Emblem, weighing it in for something more or less powerful, depending on the Relic holder’s choice.”

Roman peered at the scale for a moment, before lighting up. “I think I know what we have to do with it.” Everyone turned as he rose to his feet and took the Relic out of Patton’s hands. We can destroy it!.”

“How is that going to help?” Virgil asked, rising to his feet with Remus behind him.

“If the balance between the magic in mundane in Magnus or even Falea is screwed, don’t you think that we could change the scales to be in  _ our _ favor. If we destroyed it, maybe we could release all of the magis trapped inside!”

“It’s worth a try!” Patton cheered, and the twins took hold of the lever of the Relic, and held it in front of them.

“You think we need to say a big speech or somethin’?” Remus asked. “Always seemed to be important.”

“Sure. Just do it like we did with the ‘for Creon’ stuff.” They both nodded and held the Relic in front of them.

“We swear that when we return to Castellum, we will try to make changes for the better. We swear that we will welcome magic and those who wield it with open arms, and try to preserve the peace, by ensuring that all are treated equally and magic is allowed to be free in Magnus.” And with this, they both threw it to the ground, shattering it. The metal began to glow, and suddenly exploded into particles of light, flickering and dissipating into the air.

“It is done,” Janus said officially.

The seven were silent. Logan turned to his ancestor. “You may have been treated awfully, but that does not negate the fact that you have performed countless crimes. We will continue to try and make sure no one is treated as you were for their magic, but you will have to be punished,” She recoiled, but he offered her a hand. “Come home with us. Illustris may need some work, but we can certainly take you to Castellum. We will put you on trial, and that shall decide your fate.”

“I understand,” she said, bowing her head. “But what am I to do with my life? I’m afraid I’ve already gone round and ruined it.”

“You could move in my bakery for the time being!” Patton chirped. “Maybe you could write a book!”

“That’s actually a fair point,” Roman added. “You can see everything, which means that you could write about all of your experiences. Share them with the world and spread the word!”

“That’s...actually not a horrible idea. But for now,” she declared. “Let’s get you all back home as soon as possible.”


	18. The Royal Twins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 2014
> 
> TW: Death mention,

He was not ready. There was no way that he could’ve been ready. He stood in front of the double doors, breathing deeply and slowly as Virgil told him. Oh stars, this was crazy. This was his craziest idea yet. But he had to try right? For everyone.

Roman pushed open the doors to a throne room full of angry emissaries and government officials, and a rather annoyed Dice. His eyes lit up upon seeing Roman, and with a loud and authoritative voice, he announced, “Your Royal Highness, Prince Roman Knight of Magnus! What a pleasure for you to join us,  _ several days late to your coronation _ ,” he added through gritted teeth.

“Sorry Dice! But a prince and his brother have got to slay!” He made a small gesture with his hand, and Remus was pulled into frame. The crowd gasped, and Dice even raised his eyebrows in surprise. The crowd parted as the twins swooped through, their capes heavy and their eyes glittered with chaos and excitement. Roman stood up next Dice and turned to address the crowd.

He was much more than prepared, having rehearsed this multiple times with Logan, Remus, Virgil, Patton, Janus, and most importantly, Wenfia. Now, in front of the astonished crowd, he flashed his most dazzling smile and looked to them all with earnestness.

“Thank you all for being so patient for the past few days. Today, we must address an important issue that has arisen. Oh, and if you have all forgotten, this is my brother, Remus. He was called by the Snake, who is not that bad of a person than everyone expected.”

“Well this is an information dump,” someone in the crowd grumbled. Roman caught their eye. It was the gardener, the one who had told him about the rains and whom he had promised to get the Grand Mage to help. 

The Red Prince swallowed a lump in his throat. “I suppose that I should, erm, explain myself. I initially left Castellum to the far reaches of Magnus to save some dear friends of mine from the Snake. But when we met them, it turned out the Snake was never the villain! So, I had a wee bit of an identity crisis, but then we all teamed up to defeat the true villain: the Dragon Witch! It turned out that she was going to pit us all against each other. So we climbed Mount Astra in order to stop her, but  _ then _ it turned out, she  _ knew _ we were coming and was only stalling for time by making some stupidly long speech about how she was my best friend’s ancestor, the Snake’s mother figure, and some sort of enemy of the Knight family for generations, and then she turned into an all-seeing dragon and started fighting us. But  _ then _ it turned out that she was just stalling for time, and everyone would get mad regardless of whether or not we stopped her, because apparently my dad left Magnus in a big ol’ pile of debt and problem. She was  _ actually  _ planning on using my boyfriend Patton to spread feelings of fear and outrage across the entire world. But then Patton made a huge blast of warm fuzzy feelings and Remus and I used a balance to negotiate some terms with her, and now she’s nice and started writing a book about the full history of Falea and stuff. So, uh yeah! Any questions?”

The crowd was silent. Their eyes had begun to wander elsewhere, glancing at the curtains, their shoes, or the ceiling.

Roman glanced at Remus, who was sitting on an affronted Dice. His brother shrugged, and hopped off of Dice. He looked over the crowd and screeched loudly. Their eyes suddenly turned away from elsewhere and to him, and the Green Prince giggled, clapping his hands together. “Oh goodie! You’re still alive! Now listen to me very carefully.

“We’re quitting our jobs. I’m not gonna be king, and Roman isn’t too. We’re gonna go off and do our own thing. You guys and do whatever you want, just don’t wage war against Magnus. We’ll pay off our family’s debt and be on our way. If you want a ruler, I’mma tell you now that there’s no way that you’re gonna get your so called ‘perfect government.’ Everyone is fucked up in their own way. But I suggest that you don’t leave Dice here in charge. Put in another ruler. Elect a president. Make a council. Pure anarchy. Whatever the hell you want. We’re not gonna be a part of it.”

“Well that isn’t entirely true,” Roman interrupted, earning a few glares from Remus. “We will ensure the Knight family’s debts are paid, and we will instate a few new laws regarding discrimation in place. We’ll help build a new government. One that is fair and just, as good as we can make it.

“We know that our family has done some awful things in the past, living in the lap of luxury and leaving others to rot. But we will do whatever we can to make up for it. Then, we will take our leave. Magnus will no longer be ruled by the Knight family.”

“‘That’s it?” someone asked. Roman recognized them as the president of Zylos, a distant land overseas to the east. “You’re simply going to step down?”

The twins looked to each other and back to the president. “That is correct.”

“And all of your family debts will be paid?” asked the Queen of Archen.

“All pre-existing ones, yes. We already have someone looking over the papers in our father’s old office.” Roman explained, thinking back to Logan, left in the office scouring papers. “We will be assisting him after this meeting.”

“And what exactly do you two plan on doing after you leave?” the Queen continued.

The twins looked at each other again. What  _ were _ they going to do? “Well,” Roman began slowly. “I’ll be pursuing my musical and acting career. I’ll get married and I’ll stay in Magnus.”

“I’mma explore the world and meet a buncha monsters and learn how to breathe fire!” Remus exclaimed. Then a bit more softly, he added, “And I’ll make sure nothing happens to my partner. They mean the world to me.”

“And what form of government shall we be left with?” asked an angry servant of the castle.

“With the assistance of Logan Magiste, we decided that a governing council, experienced in their respective fields of study will suffice.”

Dice piped up from the throne, “And when will this plan go into effect?”

“Immediately,” the twins said.

“Thank you for your time,” Roman said, looking across the slightly less angry crowd. “We will hold a feast in your honor using the goods intended for my coronation and would be delighted to give you a tour of the castle, while you are here. We will meet with each delegate and visitor and see what we can do about any queries or concerns they have. Then,” The Red Prince turned to his brother, “We shall leave for our own adventures.”

-

After a long day of talking and explaining to a wide range of people; royals, commoners, and servants alike; the twins turned into their quarters, rooms beside the other’s. Patton and Logan had taken Virgil, Janus, and Wenfia out on a tour of Castellum, and the guests had been rounded up in their own wings of the castle.

Roman tried to return to his room and pretend as if it were any other ordinary day, throwing his satchel on the ground and launching himself into his bed. He tried to let his mind wander to far off lands. He tried to sit at his desk as he did weeks before and write love letters to Patton. And he tried to dance and sing in his room, albeit a bit more quietly than usual.

But there was something different in the air, something he could not place. It was simply too different. He knew he would not be staying in the castle, and soon enough, he’d get to live with Patton at the Baker’s Hearth. He’d be leaving the place he called home for all of his life to be with the one he loved, and it was unlikely he’d ever be staying in the palace again. And there was possibly only one person who completely understood what he was going through.

Reluctantly, Roman rose to his feet and pulled aside a large tapestry depicting Sir Squiggles the Brave, revealing a heavy wooden door. He hadn’t used it in a while, but with enough pushing, Roman found himself bursting through into a dusty and dark passageway. He looked around quickly and found the door he was looking for. He pushed and shoved against the door for a good ten minutes before it opened from the inside, Remus blearily rubbing his eyes and standing half-naked.

“You could’ve just knocked on the actual door.” he grumbled, nonetheless showing Roman into his room. It was dark, the curtains drawn and the stained surfaces dusty. Remus had lit a concerning amount of candles and left a strange assortment of unusual items strewn across the floor of his room. He slowly walked back to his bed and lay down in the musty sheets, staring up at the ceiling. “You left my room the same.”

“Yeah, I didn’t really want to have someone suffer by cleaning up your mess.”

Remus snorted and retorted, “Oh but imagine how many different outfits you have in your closet, Roman. It’d be  _ torturous _ to try and clean  _ that _ up.”

“Fair point, fair point.”

The twins remained silent, Roman carefully treading his way over sticky pools of liquid to the nearest chair, while Remus turned on his side to watch. Once his brother had seated himself after throwing some of Remus’ old clothes to the ground, he asked, “Why’d you stay in your room? Y’know, instead of moving to dad’s?”

“Same reason you didn’t after dad died. I still wanted to be me, not a king.”

“Funny that we were both born royalty and didn’t want anything to do with it when we grew up.”

“Yeah. Funny.”

“So I proposed to Janus,” Remus said casually, “And they said yes.”

Roman sputtered incoherently. “You what? Congrats bro! When’s the wedding?”

“Eh, we eloped. I didn’t wanna dress up for a wedding and J said they didn’t want one entirely. So we may have snuck away on our way back.”

“So that’s where you went when we got to the tavern!”

Remus cackled, and rolled over to lay on his stomach, kicking his legs back and forth. “Sooo,” he said teasingly, “When are you going to ask Mr. Baker Man out?”

“I already did.”

“Ooo. Taking initiative, I see. About time you went after him. He’s very handsome. If you weren’t dating him-”

“Oh, shut up, Remus.”

He cackled and grinned as all siblings do when they know they’ve successfully gotten on their sibling’s nerves. “I kid, I kid.” He sat up completely now. Legs crossed on the bed, he put his chin in his hands and peered knowingly at his brother. “So why’d you really come here? You’d never willingly show up when we were young.”

“I...I wanted to ask you what it was like.”

“What  _ what _ was like?”

“What it was like to be gone for almost two years? Did you...did you ever miss home?”

Remus frowned, and absentmindedly stroked his mustache. “Maybe. You gotta admit, everything was easier when we were kids.”

“Yeah…”

“We could run around and do whatever we wanted. We didn’t need to bother with shit like how the economy and international relations were doing. The Royal Twins could just fight and play and do whatever they wanted.”

“But we’re not the Royal Twins anymore.”

“That’s right.”

“Remus?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

Remus perked up, a grin coming around his face. “Come again?”

“Thank you for talking with me.”

“Sorry, bro. I didn’t hear the first part, mind saying that  _ one more time _ , just a  _ little _ louder?”

“Don’t push it.”


	19. The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 663
> 
> TW: (Happy) crying

He stood in front of the mirror trying to straighten his sash. “Stars, this is really happening.” He jumped at a knock on the door, recomposed himself for the hundredth time that day, and called out, “Come in!”

Logan and Dice entered, each in their best attire. Logan was dressed in various shades of dark blue and black, every layer subtly shimmering like stars. Dice was still wearing his black scarf and shades, only now they were accompanied by a white doublet and black breeches. Dice gave a low whistle. “You look absolutely stunning. Spin for me.”

Roman spun in a simple red dress, and the necklace Patton had given him around his neck. A golden diadem was on his forehead, glimmering with rubies. His hair swept to one side as always, but blue and red flowers were delicately woven into his hair. 

“How long did it take you to do the hair?” Logan asked as Dice walked around Roman, muttering under his breath and adjusting various aspects of Roman’s outfit.

Roman stood stiffly, trying not to move, knowing full well that Dice would be done when he wanted to be done. He grinned sheepishly, “Patton and I practiced for the past few weeks. This still took me a while though, most of the morning I think.”

Logan ducked under Dice’s arms, which were currently finding the proper way to lay the diadem on Roman’s forehead. He put his arms on Roman’s shoulders, which he started doing more and more often since the establishment of the Council. “You look wonderful, Roman, and I’m proud.”

“Really?” There was a lilt in Roman’s voice, as tears started to form in the corner of his eyes. He sniffled. “You’re proud?”

The other fiercely blinked back the tears in his own eyes. Unsure of what to do, he settled for hugging Roman, much to the dismay of Dice. “Of course, Roman,” he whispered, burying his face in Roman’s chest. “Of course.”

-

_ It was a simple and quiet wedding, held at night during the Baker’s Hearth’s closed hours. It was attended by Missy, who had brought faer best bunch of roses; Remy and Emile, who were in the process of preparing to reopen a rebuilt Sweets’ Dream Bakery; Dice, who discreetly attempted to rearrange the flowers and general layout of the bakery to his own standards; Wenfia, who brought a book to read throughout the ceremony (although, if one looked closely enough, they could see the corners of her lips turned up in a smile and the tears in her eyes); Janus and Remus, the latter giggling and whispering to his partner, who watched with a satisfied and fond gaze; and Virgil and Logan, who had yet to marry (although Virgil had a surprise in his pocket for when he and Logan went home). _

_ Patton stood next to the counter, in a well-fitted suit that distracted and pale blue and red flowers in his hair. And Roman, walked between tables pushed to the side, and Remus grabbed the roses from Missy and began to throw them at his brother as he walked, resulting in an odd mixture of laughter and groans. _

_ The two men stood, hand in hand, and the officiant completed their procedures before allowing Patton to say his vows. Roman, interrupted the officiant, quickly explaining how the two would be saying their vows together. With a shrug and a smile, they allowed them to proceed: _

_ For every drop in the ocean blue, _

_ That’s another life I’ll stand with you, _

_ And for every Star I see, _

_ That’s a life you’ll stand with me. _

_ I hope you don’t mind; _

_ I know it’s the kind _

_ You can only dream of. _

_ But I know, _

_ That it’s you I truly love _

_ With this, they exchanged rings. Roman slipped a golden band on Patton’s finger and Patton slipped one of silver. With this, the officiant made closing remarks and with their final words, Patton practically leapt into Roman’s arms and they kissed. _

**Author's Note:**

> I had a vague idea of what this AU would be like in my head since what must have been October or November of last year, although I never actually wrote anything for it. Since then, it has grown and developed from a loose concept to something I put my heart and soul into. Late nights were spent writing, and this story helped get me through a lot. I love this fic and AU so much, and I'm so excited to finally be able to share it with everyone. Thank you to @prox-xima for being a lovely pinch-hitter and making some amazing digital art, which I've linked in the first chapter (but I'll do it again in the comments below). You did a lovely job and it warms my heart to see your work! Thank you all for reading, and I hope you enjoyed Emblem!


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